Etymograph

English

nappe

Nappe comes from French nappe, from Latin mappa ‘napkin’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Semitic *manpay.

  1. Proto-Semiticc. 4000–3000 BCE*manpay1root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Phoenicianmodern𐤌𐤀𐤐1uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmappa2‘napkin’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentnappe3
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2004nappe3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin mappa
  2. 2 Wiktionary, French nappe
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English nappe
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2004, Richard Fortey, The Earth: “The generation of an Alpine mountain range is a…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Semiticc. 4000–3000 BCE*manpayWiktionary, Latin mapparoot named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
  2. Phoenicianmodern𐤌𐤀𐤐Wiktionary, Latin mappauncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmappaWiktionary, French nappe‘napkin’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentnappeWiktionary, English nappe
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2004nappeWiktionary, English nappe. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2004, Richard Fortey, The Earth: “The generation of an Alpine mountain range is a…”

Linked words

through Latin mappa ‘napkin’

mop, apron, nape, 1 more

through French nappe

nap

Today it means

noun The profile of a body of water flowing over an obstruction in a vertical drop.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “nappe”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin mappa, French nappe. 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-Semitic *manpay / nappe

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