English
shawm
Shawm comes from Late Latin calamellus ‘a little reed or pen’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ḱélh₂m̥.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱélh₂m̥1‘reed, straw’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκάλαμος2kálamos‘a reed’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalamus2‘reed’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcalamellus2‘a little reed or pen’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400chalemel2
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500shalmuse2
- Englishearliest quotation 1866shawm2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek κάλαμος, which cites Beekes
- 2 Wiktionary, English shawm
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1866, Algernon Charles Swinburne, St. Dorothy: “And all the field is thick with companies Of…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱélh₂m̥Wiktionary, Ancient Greek κάλαμος, which cites Beekes‘reed, straw’reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκάλαμοςWiktionary, English shawmkálamos‘a reed’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcalamusWiktionary, English shawm‘reed’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcalamellusWiktionary, English shawm‘a little reed or pen’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400chalemelWiktionary, English shawm
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500shalmuseWiktionary, English shawm
- Englishearliest quotation 1866shawmWiktionary, English shawm. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1866, Algernon Charles Swinburne, St. Dorothy: “And all the field is thick with companies Of…”
Linked words
through Latin calamus ‘reed’
through Late Latin calamellus ‘a little reed or pen’
Today it means
noun A mediaeval double-reed wind instrument with a conical wooden body.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “shawm”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek κάλαμος. 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 *ḱélh₂m̥ / shawm