Etymology
1. O.E.
mona, from P.Gmc.
*mænon- (cf. O.S., O.H.G.
mano, O.Fris.
mona, O.N.
mani, Du.
maan, Ger.
Mond, Goth.
mena "moon"), from PIE
*me(n)ses- "moon, month" (cf. Skt.
masah "moon, month;" Avestan
ma, Pers.
mah, Arm.
mis "month;" Gk.
mene "moon,"
men "month;" L.
mensis "month;" O.C.S.
meseci, Lith.
menesis "moon, month;" O.Ir.
mi, Welsh
mis, Bret.
miz "month"), probably from base
*me- "to measure," in ref. to the moon's phases as the measure of time. In Gk., Italic, Celtic, Armenian the cognate words now mean only "month." Gk.
selene (Lesbian
selanna) is from
selas "light, brightness (of heavenly bodies)." Extended 1665 to satellites of other planets. To
shoot the moon "leave without paying rent" is British slang from c.1823; card-playing sense perhaps infl. by gambler's
shoot the works (1922) "go for broke" in shooting dice. The
man in the moon is mentioned since c.1310; he carries a bundle of thorn-twigs and is accompanied by a dog. The Japanese, however, see a
rice-cake-making rabbit in the moon.
2. Etymology tree
3. Proto-Indo-European *meh₁-?
4. Proto-Indo-European *mḗh₁n̥s
5. Proto-Germanic *mēnô
6. Proto-West Germanic *mānō
7. Old English mōna
8. Middle English mone
9. English moon
10. From Middle English mone, from Old English mōna (“moon”), from Proto-West Germanic *mānō, from Proto-Germanic *mēnô (“moon”), from Proto-Indo-European *mḗh₁n̥s (“moon; month”), probably from *meh₁- (“to measure”).
11. Cognates
12. Cognate with Scots muin, mune (“moon”), Yola mona, moone (“moon”), North Frisian moune, muun (“moon”), Saterland Frisian Moune (“moon”), West Frisian moanne (“moon”), Alemannic German Maan, manä, manòd, mànund, meini, moanu, Mond (“moon”), Bavarian mone (“moon”), Central Franconian Mond (“moon”), Cimbrian ma, maano, må (“moon”), Dutch maan, maen (“moon”), German Mond (“moon”), Limburgish maon, maond, moan, mond, Moën, Mǫnt, Mǫe̩nt, Mǫǫnt (“moon”), Luxembourgish Mound (“moon”), Mòcheno mu' (“moon”), Vilamovian mönd, mönt (“moon”), West Flemish moane (“moon”), Yiddish מאָנט (mont, “moon”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish måne (“moon”), Faroese and Icelandic máni (“moon”), Norn måni (“moon”), Crimean Gothic mine (“moon”), Gothic 𐌼𐌴𐌽𐌰 (mēna, “the Moon”); also Cornish and Welsh mis (“month”), Irish mí (“month”), Manx mee (“month”), Scottish Gaelic mìos (“moon; month”), Latin mēnsis (“month”), Umbrian 𐌌𐌄𐌍𐌆𐌍𐌄 (menzne, “Moon”), Greek μήνας (mínas, “month”), Albanian muaj (“month”), Latvian mēnesis (“month”), mēness (“moon”), Lithuanian mėnuo (“moon; month”), Belarusian and Russian ме́сяц (mésjac, “moon; month”), Bulgarian and Macedonian ме́сец (mésec, “moon; month”), Czech měsíc (“moon; month”), Polish miesiąc, mięsiąc, mniesiąc, niesiąc (“moon; month”), Serbo-Croatian ме̏се̄ц, мје̏се̄ц, mȅsēc, mjȅsēc (“moon; month”), Slovak mesiac (“moon; month”), Slovene mesec (“moon; month”), Ukrainian мі́сяць (mísjacʹ, “moon; month”), Armenian ամիս (amis, “month”), Avestan 𐬨𐬃𐬢𐬵 (mā̊ŋh, “month”), 𐬨𐬂𐬢𐬵𐬀 (måŋha, “moon”), Bactrian μαο (mao), μαυο (mauo, “month”), Central Kurdish and Southern Kurdish مانگ (mang, “moon; month”), Northern Kurdish meh (“month”), Ossetian мӕй (mæj, “moon; month”), Pashto مياشت (myâšt, “month”), Persian مه (mah), ماه (māh / mâh, “moon; month”), Tajik моҳ (moh, “moon; month”), Tocharian A mañ (“moon; month”), Tocharian B meñe (“moon; month”), Sanskrit मस् (mas), मास् (mās, “moon; month”). See also month, a related term within Indo-European.
13. The usage of "moon" to refer to the act reflected its use as a metaphor for the buttocks since 1743. It was popularised from American student slang in the 1960s. See: Middle English '
mone', Frisian, Northern 'moune', Frisian, Saterlandic 'Moune', Albanian '
muaj', Sanskrit '
मस्'.