aristocrat

The story

1. Ancient Greek · derived fromἀριστοκρατία
2. Medieval Latin · derived fromaristocratia
3. French · borrowed fromaristocrate“aristocrat”
4. English todayaristocrat

From French aristocrate (“aristocrat”), attested once in the 16th century but recoined in the Revolutionary era, from aristocratie (“aristocracy”), from Medieval Latin aristocratia, from Ancient Greek ἀριστοκρατία (aristokratía), from ἄριστος (áristos, “best”) (compare Old English ar) + κράτος (krátos, “rule”). By surface analysis, aristo- + -crat.

Words from the same roots