Etymograph

English

mannequin

Mannequin may come from Middle Dutch mannekin, from Old Dutch man ‘human, person’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mon- ‘man’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mon-1‘man’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*mann-2‘human, human being, person, individual’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*mann2‘person, human, individual’reconstructed
  4. Old Dutchc. 500–1150man2‘human, person’
  5. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500man3uncertain
  6. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500mannekin3uncertaindiminutive of man
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentmannequin3
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1928mannequin3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *mann-, which cites Kroonen, Kluge
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Middle Dutch man
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English mannequin
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1928, Agatha Christie: “She screamed out direction to various mannequins. "Clothilde, Virginie,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mon-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *mann-, which cites Kroonen, Kluge‘man’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*mann-Wiktionary, Middle Dutch man‘human, human being, person, individual’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*mannWiktionary, Middle Dutch man‘person, human, individual’reconstructed
  4. Old Dutchc. 500–1150manWiktionary, Middle Dutch man‘human, person’
  5. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500manWiktionary, English mannequinuncertain
  6. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500mannekinWiktionary, English mannequinuncertaindiminutive of man
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentmannequinWiktionary, English mannequin
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1928mannequinWiktionary, English mannequin. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1928, Agatha Christie: “She screamed out direction to various mannequins. "Clothilde, Virginie,…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *mon- ‘man’

mush, 15 more

through Proto-Germanic *mann- ‘human, human being, person, individual’

men, mankind, mensch, munchkin, shipman, mannish, 14 more

through Proto-West Germanic *mann ‘person, human, individual’

man, chairman, madman, horseman, manfully, 13 more

Today it means

noun A dummy, or life-size model of the human body, used for martial arts training or the fitting or displaying of clothes.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mannequin”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *mann-, Middle Dutch man. 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 *mon- / mannequin

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