roster

Where does the word "roster" come from? It comes from Dutch rooster, and was adopted directly into English (1720s).

Roster’s story begins in Dutch: rooster meant “gridiron.” A Dutch word for a grill; a list ruled with lines looked like one, so it also came to mean a list. It reached English by 1720s as roster. Picked up from Dutch military usage; later any list of names and duties. Today, roster means a list of names and duties.

1. Stage 1 · Dutch · 1600s rooster "gridiron", a Dutch word for a grill; a list ruled with lines looked like one, so it also came to mean a list.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1720s roster "list of duties", picked up from Dutch military usage; later any list of names and duties.