Etymograph

English

mythomane

Mythomane comes from French mythomane ‘mythomaniac’, from Ancient Greek μανία ‘madness’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *men- ‘to think, mind’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-1‘to think, mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mn̥yétor1‘to think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*məňňómai1reconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαίνομαι1maínomai‘to rage’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμανία1manía‘madness’
  6. Frenchc. 1600–presentmythomane1‘mythomaniac’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 2019mythomane1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English mythomane
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Louis Theroux, London: Macmillan: “Maybe because I was working on the programmes at…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*men-Wiktionary, English mythomane‘to think, mind’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*mn̥yétorWiktionary, English mythomane‘to think’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*məňňómaiWiktionary, English mythomanereconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμαίνομαιWiktionary, English mythomanemaínomai‘to rage’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμανίαWiktionary, English mythomanemanía‘madness’
  6. Frenchc. 1600–presentmythomaneWiktionary, English mythomane‘mythomaniac’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 2019mythomaneWiktionary, English mythomane. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Louis Theroux, London: Macmillan: “Maybe because I was working on the programmes at…”

Linked words

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

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

through Ancient Greek μαίνομαι ‘to rage’

mania, manic, 9 more

Today it means

noun Someone who suffers from mythomania.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “mythomane”. 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- / mythomane

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