slave

Where does the word "slave" come from? It comes from Medieval Latin Sclavus, passing through Old French before entering English (1200s).

Slave’s story begins in Medieval Latin: Sclavus meant “a Slavic person.” A Slav, since Slavic peoples were widely captured and enslaved in medieval Europe. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as esclave. Carried into French for a person held in bondage. It reached English by 1200s as slave. Settled as the English word for a person owned and forced to work by another. Today, slave means a person who is legally owned by another and forced to work without pay.

1. Stage 1 · Medieval Latin · medieval Sclavus "a Slavic person", a Slav, since Slavic peoples were widely captured and enslaved in medieval Europe.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval esclave "a person held in bondage", carried into French for a person held in bondage.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1200s slave "a person owned by and forced to work for another", settled as the English word for a person owned and forced to work by another.