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Dolmen

3 stages from Cornish to English.

Today it means a prehistoric tomb of upright stones capped by a large flat stone

Where does the word "dolmen" come from? It comes from Cornish tolmen, passing through French before entering English (1850s).

tolmen→dolmen→dolmen

Cornish · medieval

'hole of stone', used for holed stones such as the Men-an-Tol in west Cornwall; one proposed source of 'dolmen'

"megalithic tomb"

used by Théophile-Malo de La Tour d'Auvergne, a Breton-born officer and antiquary, for megalithic 'stone tables', perhaps also thinking of Breton taol 'table' + men 'stone'

English · 1850s

"prehistoric stone tomb"

taken from French archaeology; Ireland's Poulnabrone dolmen in the Burren is over 5,000 years old

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Read the full story

Dolmen’s story begins in Cornish: tolmen meant “holed stone.” 'hole of stone', used for holed stones such as the Men-an-Tol in west Cornwall; one proposed source of 'dolmen'. By 1796, the word had taken hold in French as dolmen. Used by Théophile-Malo de La Tour d'Auvergne, a Breton-born officer and antiquary, for megalithic 'stone tables', perhaps also thinking of Breton taol 'table' + men 'stone'. It reached English by 1850s as dolmen. Taken from French archaeology; Ireland's Poulnabrone dolmen in the Burren is over 5,000 years old. Today, dolmen means a prehistoric tomb of upright stones capped by a large flat stone.