Etymograph

English

maar

Maar comes from German Maar, from Vulgar Latin *mara ‘standing water’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mer- ‘sea, lake, wetland’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mer-1‘sea, lake, wetland’disputed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*móri2‘sea’uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mari2‘sea’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmare3‘sea’uncertain
  5. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*mara3‘standing water’uncertain
  6. Germanc. 1650–presentMaar3
  7. Englishtodaymaar3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *móri
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin mare
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English maar

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mer-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *móri‘sea, lake, wetland’disputed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*móriWiktionary, Latin mare‘sea’uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*mariWiktionary, Latin mare‘sea’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmareWiktionary, English maar‘sea’uncertain
  5. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*maraWiktionary, English maar‘standing water’uncertain
  6. Germanc. 1650–presentMaarWiktionary, English maar
  7. EnglishtodaymaarWiktionary, English maar

The story

English usage from 1825, from German Maar, of uncertain origin (see the German entry for theories), possibly from Vulgar Latin *mara (‘standing water’), from Latin mare (‘sea’), and thus a Doublet of mare (‘a large, dark plain; a lake on Titan’) and mere (‘a body of standing water’).disputed Scholars disagree here; the competing view is quoted as the source gives it.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *mer- ‘sea, lake, wetland’

remember, murder, mortality, mortal, nightmare, mortar, muller, morbid, mort, morn, mara, ambrosia, moribund, cormorant, marshy, marinara, 59 more

through Proto-Indo-European *móri ‘sea’

march, mere, moor, marsh, 15 more

through Proto-Italic *mari ‘sea’

submarine, mariner, 9 more

through Latin mare ‘sea’

marine, maritime, mare, marinate, martingale, 13 more

Today it means

noun A broad volcanic crater, usually filled with water to form a lake.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “maar”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Indo-European *móri, Latin mare. 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 *mer- / maar

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