zéro (French)
Where does "zéro" come from?
The French word 'zéro' traces its origins back to the Arabic term 'صفر', which means 'void' or 'nothing'. This concept entered European mathematics through Medieval Latin as 'zephirum', a term famously used by the mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci in 1202. The word later shifted into Italian as 'zero' and was eventually borrowed into French. Interestingly, 'zéro' is a doublet of the word 'chiffre', meaning both share the same ultimate Arabic ancestor despite their different paths into the French language.
Full etymology tree
- zéro (French), 'zero'
- borrowed zero (Italian), 'zero'
- derived zefiro (Italian), 'a light west wind, a zephyr'
- inherited zephyrus (Latin), 'the gentle west wind, the western breeze, zephyr; personified as the Greek god Zephyrus'
- inherited Ζέφυρος (Zéphuros) (Ancient Greek), 'Zephyrus, the west wind'
- inherited zephyrus (Latin), 'the gentle west wind, the western breeze, zephyr; personified as the Greek god Zephyrus'
- derived zerum (Latin), 'zero'
- inherited zēphirum (Latin), 'zero'
- borrowed صِفْر (ṣifr) (Arabic), 'Safar, the second of the twelve months of the Muslim lunar calendar, each beginning with a new moon.'
- derived ص ف ر (ṣ f r) (Arabic)
- borrowed صِفْر (ṣifr) (Arabic), 'Safar, the second of the twelve months of the Muslim lunar calendar, each beginning with a new moon.'
- inherited zēphirum (Latin), 'zero'
- derived zefiro (Italian), 'a light west wind, a zephyr'
- borrowed zero (Italian), 'zero'
Ancestors
- zero (Italian)
- zephirum (Latin)
- صفر (Arabic)
Cognates and doublets
- chiffre (French)
Updated August 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris