navel English · revision 1050
11 Oct 2026, 04:58 by bogdan “New entry from the dictionary sources (AHD, Barnhart, Etymonline, MW, OED, RHWU, Wiktionary)” current version
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+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈneɪvəl/, /ˈneɪbəl/^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is [[inh|enm|navele]], [[inh|ang|nafela]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) from [[gem-pro|*nabalô]];^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) it is related to [[nl|navel]], [[de|Nabel]] and [[non|nafli]].^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) The Germanic word goes back to the Proto-Indo-European root ''*(o)nobh-'' “navel”,^(AHD)^(Etymonline) which also gave [[la|umbilīcus]], [[grc|ὀμφαλός|tr=omphalós]] and Sanskrit ''nābhīla''.^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) It is also related to [[nave]] “hub of a wheel”.^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ The rounded depression on the abdomen where the umbilical cord was attached (c. 725).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Since the navel is at the centre of the body, the word was used from 1382 of the centre of a country, sea or forest, and from 1603 of the middle point of anything.^(OED 1989) It also meant the nave of a wheel (1388), a sense now obsolete.^(OED 1989) The phrase ''to contemplate one's navel'', for self-absorbed meditation, is recorded from 1933,^(OED 1989) and ''navel'' is short for ''[[navel orange]]'' from 1888.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * c. 725 – Old English ''nabula'', the navel.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)
+ * 1382 – the centre of a country, forest or sea.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1603 – the middle point of anything.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1888 – a navel orange.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1933 – ''to contemplate one's navel''.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # The mark on the [[abdomen]] of a [[mammal]] where the [[umbilical cord]] was attached before birth; the [[umbilicus]] or [[belly button]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+ # A central point; the middle.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+ # A [[navel orange]].^(OED 1989)^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[navel-gazing]]
+ * [[navel orange]]
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[nave]]
+ * [[umbilicus]]
+ * [[omphalos]]
+ * [[umbilical]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}