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horde

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Etymology and origin of the French word horde

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1559 Guillaume Postel, République des Turcs More words from the 16th century
Borrowed from
Tatar орда
Ultimate origin
Tatar орда

Pronunciation

Forms

horde f (plural hordes)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Tatar орда (orda, “military camp”).[2][3][4][5] The TLFi and Bloch–Wartburg give the Tatar word in Latin letters, as (h)orda.[2][3][4][5] Rey calls the source Turko-Mongol.[6] Related forms are Kipchak orda (about 1300), Turkish ordu (“army, military camp”) and Mongolian ᠣᠷᠳᠤ (ordu, “camp, horde”).[2][6][7] The same word is the origin of ourdou, the name of the language.[6][3]

The word was known in Europe from the 13th century: Medieval Latin orda “military camp” is used about 1240 by Vincent de Beauvais and in the middle of the century by Giovanni da Pian del Carpine, who travelled to Mongolia.[2][6] The origin of the initial ⟨h⟩ is unknown; it first appears in a German spelling in 1429.[2][6] Bloch and Wartburg note that the word travelled widely, German Horde being recorded from 1534.[4] The Wiktionnaire has it come into French through German and Polish horda, from Russian орда (orda).[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in 1559 in Guillaume Postel's account of a journey among the Turks, une horde des dits Tartares, for a wandering tribe of the Tatars.[2][4][6]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century d'Aubigné wrote of Tatars who live in tents and par hordes.[8] In the 17th century the word was applied, by analogy, to a troop of animals (La Fontaine, 1669, of ants),[2][6] and by extension (Furetière, 1690) to any wandering tribe or nomadic people.[2][6]

It became pejorative in the 18th century:[4] Lemierre used it in 1767 for a band of men given to disorder, the common sense today, and Coyer in 1769 for any crowd at all, cette horde d'honnêtes gens (of the Quakers).[2][6] In 1848 Chateaubriand used it figuratively for a great number of things, a sense that remained rare.[2][6] In the 19th century, translations of Darwin used horde primitive for a primitive human group ruled by a powerful male.[6]

English horde (1550s) came from the same West Turkic word.[9]

Timeline

  • c. 1240 – Medieval Latin orda “military camp” is used by Vincent de Beauvais.[2][6]
  • 1429 – German horda, the first form with ⟨h⟩, is recorded.[2][6]
  • 1559 – Horde appears in Guillaume Postel's account of the Turks, of a Tatar tribe.[2][4]
  • 1669 – La Fontaine uses it for a troop of animals.[2][6]
  • 1690 – Furetière records the wider sense “nomadic people”.[2][6]
  • 1767 – Lemierre uses it for a band of disorderly men.[2][6]
  • 1769 – Coyer uses it for any crowd.[2][6]
  • 1848 – Chateaubriand uses it for a great number of things.[2][6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (didactic) A nomadic tribe of Central Asia;[10][2][8] la Horde d'or, the Golden Horde, the most powerful Mongol tribe.[10][2][8]
  2. A wandering people or band without a fixed home.[10][8]
  3. A band of undisciplined or unruly people, a mob: une horde de supporters.[10][11]
  4. A troop of animals.[2][6]
  5. (rare, figurative) A great mass of things.[6][2]
  • ourdou
  • harde

Usage notes

The initial ⟨h⟩ is aspirated: la horde, without elision or liaison.[3][10][12]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
  3. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ a b Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 20, 106b
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b Wiktionnaire (French Wiktionary), fr.wiktionary.org
  8. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  9. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  10. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  11. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  12. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
Cite this entry

“Horde.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/horde. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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