October

Etymology

It is inherited from Old English October,^[2][3] borrowed from Latin Octōber,^[4][5][6] and later borrowed from Anglo-Norman octobre.^[4][7] The Latin is formed from octō (“eight”),^[4][6][8] from Proto-Indo-European *octo(u)- (“eight”),^[6] with -ber, also -bris, a suffix of uncertain origin found in the names of months;^[4] Dictionary.com takes it as modelled on September, November and December.^[2] It was the eighth month of the ancient Roman calendar, whose year began in March.^[4][6][5] Compare Spanish octubre, Portuguese outubro, Italian ottobre, Dutch oktober and German Oktober.^[4] Post-classical Latin also had the analogical Octember, from the 6th century.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The tenth month of the year: in Old English, in the translation of the Herbarium of Pseudo-Apuleius,^[4] about 1050 in Barnhart.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The Latin name replaced the Old English winterfylleð.^[6][9] The Middle English form Octobre, from French, was recorded about 1150 and gave way to the Latin spelling in the 1500s.^[5] Johnson (1755) still explains it as the eighth month numbered from March, and quotes Peacham's picture of the month in yellow and carnation, with the sign of Scorpio in his hand.^[10] From 1705 October also meant a strong ale traditionally brewed in the month, a sense now chiefly historical.^[4] Etymonline notes that the Russian October Revolution took place on 7 November 1917, reckoned as 25 October in the Old Style calendar still used there.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 1150 – the Middle English form Octobre.^[5]
• 1705 – a strong ale brewed in October.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. The tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, with 31 days.^[4][11][3]
2. A strong ale traditionally brewed in this month; now chiefly historical.^[4]

Word family

• Octoberfest
• Octobrist

Related words

• eight
• octagon
• octave
• octet
• octopus
• September
• November
• December

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
3. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
9. ^ Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
10. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
11. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster