Etymology Map
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Truant

3 stages from Gaulish to English.

Today it means a pupil who stays away from school without permission

Where does the word "truant" come from? It comes from Gaulish *trugant-, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

1
Stage 1 of 3
*trugant-
Gaulish · ancient
"wretch"
a likely Celtic source, reconstructed from its relatives Welsh truan and Old Irish trúag, both 'wretched'
2
Stage 2 of 3
truand
Old French · 1200s
"vagrant beggar"
'beggar, vagabond'; Paris still has a rue de la Grande-Truanderie in Les Halles, named after them
3
Stage 3 of 3
truant
English · 1300s
"one who skips school"
shifted from 'idle beggar' to 'pupil who skips school'; attendance became compulsory in England with the Elementary Education Act of 1880
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Truant’s story begins in Gaulish: *trugant- meant “wretch.” A likely Celtic source, reconstructed from its relatives Welsh truan and Old Irish trúag, both 'wretched'. By 1200s, the word had taken hold in Old French as truand. 'beggar, vagabond'; Paris still has a rue de la Grande-Truanderie in Les Halles, named after them. It reached English by 1300s as truant. Shifted from 'idle beggar' to 'pupil who skips school'; attendance became compulsory in England with the Elementary Education Act of 1880. Today, truant means a pupil who stays away from school without permission.