Etymograph

English

bannock

Bannock comes from Old Irish bannach, from Latin pānicum ‘millet’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)penh₁- ‘to twist’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)penh₁-1‘to twist’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpānis1‘bread’uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpānicum2‘millet’uncertain
  4. Old Irishc. 600–900bannach2
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150bannuc2‘scone’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500bannoke2
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1850bannock2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin panicum
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English bannock
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1850, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology: “"It was till lately believed by the ploughmen of…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)penh₁-Wiktionary, Latin panicum‘to twist’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpānisWiktionary, Latin panicum‘bread’uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpānicumWiktionary, English bannock‘millet’uncertain
  4. Old Irishc. 600–900bannachWiktionary, English bannock
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150bannucWiktionary, English bannock‘scone’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500bannokeWiktionary, English bannock
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1850bannockWiktionary, English bannock. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1850, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology: “"It was till lately believed by the ploughmen of…”

The story

From Middle English bannoke, from Old English bannuc, perhaps from a Goidelic word (compare Irish bonnóg, Manx bonnag, Scottish Gaelic bonnach), possibly from Latin pānicum (‘millet’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)penh₁- ‘to twist’

spin, 11 more

through Latin pānis ‘bread’

company, pain, companion, accompaniment, pannier, 11 more

through Latin pānicum ‘millet’

panic, 2 more

Today it means

noun An unleavened bread, usually made with barleymeal, wheatmeal, or oatmeal; sometimes of peasemeal or otherwise.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “bannock”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin panicum. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)penh₁- / bannock

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