Etymologically
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bastion

Etymology and origin of the English word bastion

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Formation
Borrowing
Borrowed from
Middle French bastion

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈbæsti.ən/ (UK); /ˈbæsti.ən/, /ˈbæst͡ʃən/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French bastion,[2][3][4] a variant of bastillon, diminutive of bastille “fortress”.[5][2][3] Barnhart and Merriam-Webster see the influence of Italian bastione,[2][4] augmentative of bastia “fortress”, from bastire “to build”,[4][6] a word of Germanic origin.[4][6] Etymonline instead traces it to Old Provençal bastir “to build”.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A projecting part of a fortification (1562 in Barnhart and Merriam-Webster, 1598 in the OED).[2][4][7]

Semantic evolution

The word is a term of military architecture, for an earthwork or mass of masonry projecting from a rampart.[7][6] It came to be used figuratively, for any defence or rampart (1679),[7] and so for anything that strongly preserves or defends a quality or principle, as in “a bastion of democracy”.[6][1]

Timeline

  • 1562 – a projecting part of a fortification (Barnhart, Merriam-Webster).[2][4]
  • 1590–1600 – Random House's dating.[6]
  • 1679 – figurative, a defence.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A projecting part of a fortification or rampart.
  2. A well-fortified position; a stronghold.
  3. Something that strongly preserves or defends a quality, principle or way of life.

Word family

  • bastioned
  • bastille
  • baste
  • fortress
  • bulwark

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  6. ^ a b c d e 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

“Bastion.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/bastion. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·