Etymograph

English

cargo

Cargo comes from Spanish cargo ‘load, burden’, from Latin carrus ‘a wagon, a two-wheeled baggage cart’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- ‘to run’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱers-1‘to run’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱr̥sós1‘vehicle, literally runner’reconstructedzero-grade form of *ḱers-
  3. Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*karros1‘wagon’reconstructed
  4. Gaulishc. 500 BCE–500 CE*karros1‘wagon’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarrus2‘a wagon, a two-wheeled baggage cart’
  6. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcarricō3‘to load’
  7. Spanishc. 1500–presentcargar3‘to load’
  8. Spanishc. 1500–presentcargo3‘load, burden’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1806cargo3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin carrus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin carrico
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English cargo
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1806, James Harrison: “"[…]her whole and entire cargo; and, also, all such…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱers-Wiktionary, Latin carrus‘to run’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱr̥sósWiktionary, Latin carrus‘vehicle, literally runner’reconstructedzero-grade form of *ḱers-
  3. Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*karrosWiktionary, Latin carrus‘wagon’reconstructed
  4. Gaulishc. 500 BCE–500 CE*karrosWiktionary, Latin carrus‘wagon’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcarrusWiktionary, Latin carrico‘a wagon, a two-wheeled baggage cart’
  6. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcarricōWiktionary, English cargo‘to load’
  7. Spanishc. 1500–presentcargarWiktionary, English cargo‘to load’
  8. Spanishc. 1500–presentcargoWiktionary, English cargo‘load, burden’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1806cargoWiktionary, English cargo. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1806, James Harrison: “"[…]her whole and entire cargo; and, also, all such…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- ‘to run’

course, current, rush, occur, currency, hurry, curriculum, corridor, courier, precursor, incur, concur, cursor, hurrah, recursive, corsair, carousel, recursion, recur, courant, succour, hussar, 41 more

through Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós ‘vehicle, literally runner’

corral, 12 more

through Latin carrus ‘a wagon, a two-wheeled baggage cart’

car, career, carry, carrier, discharge, carriage, chariot, recharge, caricature, carrack, 10 more

through Late Latin carricō ‘to load’

charge, 2 more

Today it means

noun Freight carried by a ship, aircraft, or motor vehicle.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “cargo”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin carrus, Latin carrico. 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 *ḱers- / cargo

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