Etymology

protector

pro·tec·tor
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Today it means: Someone who protects or guards, by assignment or on their own initiative. Full definition →

Middle English protectour ← Anglo-Norman protectour ← Latin prōtēctor
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromprōtēctor
  2. Anglo-Norman · derived fromprotectour
  3. Middle English · inherited fromprotectour
  4. English todayprotector

From Middle English protectour, from Anglo-Norman protectour, protector and its etymon Latin prōtēctor, from prōtegō (“shield, protect”). By surface analysis, protect + -or. Displaced native Old English sċildend.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.