Etymograph

English

coroner

Coroner comes from Old French coroner ‘to crown’, from Latin corōna ‘chaplet, laurel, or wreath’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱorh₂-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱorh₂-1reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκορώνη1korṓnē‘a type of seabird, perhaps a shearwater’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcorōna1‘chaplet, laurel, or wreath’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcorōnāre1
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400coroner1‘to crown’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500coroner1
  7. Englishtodaycoroner1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English coroner

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱorh₂-Wiktionary, English coronerreconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκορώνηWiktionary, English coronerkorṓnē‘a type of seabird, perhaps a shearwater’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcorōnaWiktionary, English coroner‘chaplet, laurel, or wreath’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcorōnāreWiktionary, English coroner
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400coronerWiktionary, English coroner‘to crown’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500coronerWiktionary, English coroner
  7. EnglishtodaycoronerWiktionary, English coroner

The story

The function was originally to protect royal properties.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ḱorh₂-

corniche, 13 more

through Ancient Greek κορώνη ‘a type of seabird, perhaps a shearwater’

corollary, 15 more

through Latin corōna ‘chaplet, laurel, or wreath’

crown, tosh, corolla, krona, 16 more

through Old French coroner ‘to crown’

crowning, 2 more

Today it means

noun A public official who presides over an inquest into unnatural deaths, and who may have (or historically had) additional powers such as investigating cases of treasure trove.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “coroner”. 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 *ḱorh₂- / coroner

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