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Huguenot

Etymology and origin of the English word Huguenot

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈhjuː.ɡə.nəʊ/, /ˈhjuː.ɡə.nɒt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French huguenot,[2][3][4][5][6] probably an alteration of Genevan dialect eiguenot,[2][3][5] from Swiss German Eidgenoss “confederate”,[2][3][4][5][6] from Middle High German eitgenōz, from Middle High German eit (“oath”) + genōz (“comrade”).[2][3][4] The form was probably influenced by the name of Hugues, a leader of the Genevan partisans.[2][3][4][6] Etymonline notes that French etymologists have proposed many other origins.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A French Protestant of the Calvinist or Reformed church (1562 in Etymonline; 1565 in Barnhart, Merriam-Webster and the OED).[4][3][5][7]

Semantic evolution

In the 1520s the name was given to the partisans in Geneva who opposed the Duke of Savoy and favoured union with the Swiss Confederation,[3][4] and was at first a political rather than a religious term.[4] Because Geneva became a Calvinist centre, it was applied in France to Protestants in general.[4] The adjective is from 1682.[7]

Timeline

  • 1520s – Genevan partisans against the Duke of Savoy.[3][4]
  • 1562–65 – a French Protestant.[4][3][5][7]
  • 1682 – adjective.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A French Protestant of the Reformed or Calvinist church, especially in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Adjective

  1. Of or relating to the Huguenots.

Word family

  • Huguenotic
  • Huguenotism
  • Calvinist
  • oath

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Huguenot.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/Huguenot. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·