champion

Where does the word "champion" come from? It comes from Latin campus, passing through Medieval Latin before entering English (1200s).

Champion’s story begins in Latin: campus meant “an open field, a battlefield.” An open field, especially a field of battle or combat. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Medieval Latin as campio. One who fights in the field, a combatant representing another. It reached English by 1200s as champion. Settled as the English word for a winner or defender in a contest. Today, champion means the winner of a competition, or a person who defends a cause.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient campus "an open field, a battlefield", an open field, especially a field of battle or combat.
2. Stage 2 · Medieval Latin · medieval campio "a combatant, a fighter", one who fights in the field, a combatant representing another.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1200s champion "the winner of a contest, or a defender of a cause", settled as the English word for a winner or defender in a contest.