demonyo (Tagalog)
Where does "demonyo" come from?
The Tagalog word 'demonyo' is a loanword from the Spanish 'demonio,' tracing its ultimate origins back to the Ancient Greek 'daimónion.' While the term originally described a divine power or a deity in its earliest Greek form, its meaning shifted significantly through Latin to denote a lesser spirit, eventually becoming the 'demon' we recognize today.
Full etymology tree
- demonyo (Tagalog), 'demon'
- borrowed demonio (Spanish), 'demon, devil'
- inherited daemonium (Latin), 'demon (lesser, especially evil, spirit)'
- borrowed δαιμόνιον (daimónion) (Ancient Greek), 'the divine Power, the Deity, the Divinity'
- derived δαιμόνῐος (daimónios) (Ancient Greek)
- derived δαίμων (daímōn) (Ancient Greek), 'god, goddess demigod'
- derived δαιμόνῐος (daimónios) (Ancient Greek)
- borrowed δαιμόνιον (daimónion) (Ancient Greek), 'the divine Power, the Deity, the Divinity'
- inherited daemonium (Latin), 'demon (lesser, especially evil, spirit)'
- borrowed demonio (Spanish), 'demon, devil'
Ancestors
- demonio (Spanish)
- daemonium (Latin)
- δαιμόνιον (Ancient Greek)
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris