The Sanskrit origins of the word 'name'

'Name' is a word borrowed from Sanskrit 'nā́man'. The word entered the English language some time before the 12th century.

name [noun] [before 12th century]

• a word or phrase that constitutes the distinctive designation of a person or thing
• a word or symbol used in logic to designate an entity
• a descriptive often disparaging epithet
• reputation

See 'name' on the Loan Words Map

See more loan words from Sanskrit.

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English 'nama;' akin to Old High German 'namo' name, Latin 'nomen' Greek 'onoma, onyma'

See more loan words from before 1200.