castle

Where does the word "castle" come from? It comes from Latin castellum, passing through Old North French before entering English (1000s).

Castle’s story begins in Latin: castellum meant “small fort.” A diminutive of 'castrum', fort, which also survives in place-names like Chester and Lancaster. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old North French as castel. Norman French kept the hard 'c' that Parisian French softened into 'chastel', modern 'château'. It reached English by 1000s as castle. Spread with the stone keeps the Normans built to control England after 1066. Today, castle means a large fortified building of the Middle Ages.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient castellum "small fort", a diminutive of 'castrum', fort, which also survives in place-names like Chester and Lancaster.
2. Stage 2 · Old North French · medieval castel "fortified residence", Norman French kept the hard 'c' that Parisian French softened into 'chastel', modern 'château'.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1000s castle "a fortified stronghold", spread with the stone keeps the Normans built to control England after 1066.