fennel

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English fenel, also finul,^[2] inherited from Old English finugl, also finule, fenol and finul,^[3][4][5][6] borrowed from Vulgar Latin *fēnuclum, also *fēnoclum,^[3][4][7] a popular form of Latin faeniculum (“fennel”),^[3][8][9] a diminutive of faenum (“hay”), also fēnum.^{[3][10][11][12]} Barnhart calls the spelling faenum an overcorrection.^[12] The plant was apparently named for the haylike look of its feathery leaves and its sweet smell,^[10][12] and Klein thought its smell recalled that of hay.^[13] In Middle English the word coincided with Old French fenoil, now fenouil, from the same Latin source;^[4][5] the Anglo-Norman form is recorded from the later 12th century.^[14] Etymonline and Klein take the Old English word as perhaps borrowed through Old French or influenced by it,^[10][13] and Barnhart thinks the form fenol possibly influenced by it.^[12] According to the Middle English Dictionary, fenel has the vowel of its synonym fenkel.^[2] The same popular Latin form gave Old Occitan fenolh, Italian finocchio and Spanish hinojo.^[3] Etymonline takes faenum as probably meaning "produce",^[10] and Klein and Partridge connect it with a root *fē- found in fēcundus, fēmina and fētus.^[13][15]

Earliest recorded meaning

The fragrant yellow-flowered herb: Old English, in the Épinal Glossary.^[3] Barnhart dates finugl to about 700 and fenol to about 1000, in Ælfric's Glossary.^[12]

Semantic evolution

The OED's first definition notes that the plant was grown chiefly for sauces eaten with salmon.^[3] From 1523, in Fitzherbert's Book of Husbandry, the name was given to plants that resemble it, such as dog fennel and hog's fennel,^[3][2] from 1578 to the giant fennel (Ferula), then from 1863 to the fennel-flower (Nigella).^[3] Other species were distinguished by qualifying words, such as Indian fennel, from 1796.^[3] In Lyly's Sapho and Phao (1584) fennel is an emblem of flattery.^[3] Johnson (1755) described it as "a plant of strong scent".^[16] In Surrey dialect a fennel was a female hare suckling its young.^[17]

Timeline

• Old English – the herb Foeniculum vulgare, in the Épinal Glossary.^[3]
• c. 1523 – plants resembling it, such as dog fennel and hog's fennel.^[3]
• 1578 – the giant fennel, Ferula.^[3]
• 1584 – an emblem of flattery.^[3]
• 1796 – with qualifying words for other species, such as Indian fennel.^[3]
• 1863 – the fennel-flower, Nigella.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. A perennial umbelliferous herb (Foeniculum vulgare) with yellow flowers and feathery leaves, whose aromatic seeds and leaves are used to flavour food: She seasoned the fish with a sprinkle of fennel seeds.^[8][6][3][5]
2. Any of several similar plants, such as dog fennel, hog's fennel and mayweed.^[3][8][2]

Related words

• fenugreek
• finocchio

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
8. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
9. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
11. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
12. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
13. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
14. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
15. ^ Partridge, Eric (1966), Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, 4th ed., London: Routledge & Kegan Paul
16. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
17. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)