English
brigue
Brigue comes from French briguer ‘to crave, to have one's eyes on’, from Italian briga ‘quarrel’, and ultimately from Proto-Celtic *brīgos ‘power’.
- Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*brīgos1‘power’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Italianc. 1300–presentbriga2‘quarrel’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentbriguer3as brigue‘to crave, to have one's eyes on’
- Englishearliest quotation 1704brigue3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Italian briga
- 2 Wiktionary, French briguer
- 3 Wiktionary, English brigue
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1704, Jonathan Swift, Section I. The Introduction.: “[W]e think it very unbecoming our Prudence, that the…”.
Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.
Lineage
- Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*brīgosWiktionary, Italian briga‘power’root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Italianc. 1300–presentbrigaWiktionary, French briguer‘quarrel’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentbriguerWiktionary, English brigueas brigue‘to crave, to have one's eyes on’
- Englishearliest quotation 1704brigueWiktionary, English brigue. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1704, Jonathan Swift, Section I. The Introduction.: “[W]e think it very unbecoming our Prudence, that the…”
The story
Borrowed from French brigue, of uncertain origin.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.
Linked words
through Proto-Celtic *brīgos ‘power’
through Italian briga ‘quarrel’
Today it means
noun Intrigue; secretive machinations.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “brigue”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Italian briga, French briguer. 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-Celtic *brīgos / brigue