Etymograph

English

maenad

Maenad comes from Latin Maenās ‘frenzied female follower of Bacchus’, from Ancient Greek μαινάς ‘raving, frantic’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to mind’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-1‘to mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mn̥yétor2‘to think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*məňňómai2reconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαίνομαι1maínomai‘to be mad, to rage’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαινάς1mainás‘raving, frantic’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEMaenās1‘frenzied female follower of Bacchus’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1579maenad1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English maenad
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek μαίνομαι
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1579, E. K., [October. Ægloga Decima.] Glosse.: “VVild yuie) for it is dedicated to Bacchus &…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-Wiktionary, English maenad‘to mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mn̥yétorWiktionary, Ancient Greek μαίνομαι‘to think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*məňňómaiWiktionary, Ancient Greek μαίνομαιreconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαίνομαιWiktionary, English maenadmaínomai‘to be mad, to rage’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαινάςWiktionary, English maenadmainás‘raving, frantic’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEMaenāsWiktionary, English maenad‘frenzied female follower of Bacchus’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1579maenadWiktionary, English maenad. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1579, E. K., [October. Ægloga Decima.] Glosse.: “VVild yuie) for it is dedicated to Bacchus &…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to mind’

money, music, mind, amount, mouth, mountain, museum, comment, mental, remain, mention, monster, auto, mount, min, monitor, permanent, monetary, demonstration, monk, mint, monument, mentor, monte, amnesty, muse, mosaic, maya, dementia, summon, ming, imminent, monastery, mont, muster, monstrous, prominence, eminent, amnesia, mandarin, 121 more

through Ancient Greek μαίνομαι ‘to be mad, to rage’

mania, manic, 9 more

Today it means

noun A female follower of Dionysus (“the god of wine”), associated with intense revelling.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “maenad”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek μαίνομαι. 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 *men- / maenad

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