Etymology

ivory

i·vo·ry
I1V4O1R1Y4

Today it means: The hard white form of dentin which forms the tusks of elephants, walruses and other animals. Full definition →

Middle English yvory ← Anglo-Norman ivurie ← Latin eboreus
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ivory · noun, adjective1

  1. Proto-Afroasiatic · derived from*leb-
  2. Egyptian · derived fromꜣbw“elephant, ivory, Elephantine”
  3. Demotic Egyptian · derived fromyb“ivory, Elephantine”
  4. Latin · derived fromeboreus“in or of ivory”
  5. Anglo-Norman · derived fromivurie
  6. Middle English · inherited fromyvory
  7. English todayivory

From Middle English yvory, ivorie, from Anglo-Norman ivurie, from Latin eboreus (“in or of ivory”) adjective of ebur (“ivory”) (genitive eboris), from Demotic Egyptian yb (“ivory, Elephantine”) (compare Coptic ⲓⲏⲃ (iēb, “Elephantine”)), from Egyptian ꜣbw (“elephant, ivory, Elephantine”), from Proto-Afroasiatic *leb-. Displaced native Old English elpendbān (literally “elephant bone”).

Ivory · proper noun2

The surname is habitational from Ivry in Normandy, and in some cases patronymic from a diminutive of Ivor. The modern given name is associated with ivory.

Words from the same roots

Egyptianꜣbw all →

elephant

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.