Etymology

baboon

B3A1B3O1O1N1

Today it means: An Old World monkey of the genus Papio, having dog-like muzzles and large canine teeth, cheek pouches, a short tail, and naked callosities on the buttocks. Full definition →

Middle English babewin ← Old French babouin ← Vulgar Latin babouinus
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The story

  1. Vulgar Latin · derived frombabuinare
  2. Vulgar Latin · derived frombabouinus
  3. Old French · derived frombabouin
  4. Middle English · inherited frombabewin
  5. English todaybaboon

Inherited from Middle English babewin, baboin, from Old French babouin, from baboue (“grimace; muzzle”) (whence French babouin), from an imitative origin. According to Oxford English Dictionary, it was an imitative base *bab-, which is in turn from the (reduplicated) syllable ba, characteristic of early infantile vocalization (and expressive of the movement of the lips in speech). French babouin was also borrowed into other European languages. Confer Vulgar Latin babouinus ("a grimace"), Vulgar Latin babuinare ("to paint marginal figures in manuscripts"), Italian babbuino, babuino (“baboon”), Dutch baviaan (“baboon”), German Pavian (“baboon”) For the sense of infant imitation, see English babble (“to blather”), English babe (“darling”), English baby (“infant”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.