garçon

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European*wreg-
2. Proto-Germanic*wrekaną
3. Proto-Germanic*wrakjô
4. Frankish*wrakkjō
5. Early Medieval Latingarciō
6. Old Frenchgarçon
7. Middle Frenchgarçon
8. Frenchgarçon
9. English todaygarçon

From French garçon m (1788), from Old French garçon, oblique case of gars (“servant”), from Medieval Latin garciō m, from Frankish *wrakkjō (“servant, boy”), from Proto-Germanic *wrakjô (“exile, driven one”), from Proto-Indo-European *wreg- (“to drive”). Doublet of garson and wretch. Cognate with Old High German wrecheo, recko (“exile, warrior, hero”) (Modern German Recke), Old Saxon wrekkio (“a banished person, exile, stranger”), Old English wreċċa (“a wretch, stranger, exile”), and perhaps to Old Norse rekkr (“man, warrior, hero”). More at wreak.

Words from the same roots