English word origin

Etymology of Black

From Middle English blak (“black”). Also a variant of Blake, from Old English blāc (“pale”) and Blanc, from Old French blanc (“white”).

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

name

A surname transferred from the nickname. · A town in Geneva County, Alabama. · An unincorporated community in Edwards County, Illinois. · A township in Posey County, Indiana; from the surname.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English blak (“black”). Also a variant of Blake, from Old English blāc (“pale”) and Blanc, from Old French blanc (“white”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionblakenm
Inherited-form mentionblācang
Derivation mentionblancfro

This page abbreviates 3 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "blak",
        "4": "",
        "5": "black"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English blak (“black”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "blāc",
        "4": "",
        "5": "pale"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English blāc (“pale”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "blanc",
        "4": "",
        "5": "white"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French blanc (“white”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "blak",
      "blak#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "Blake",
      "Blake"
    ],
    [
      "blāc",
      "blac#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "Blanc",
      "Blanc"
    ],
    [
      "blanc",
      "blanc#Old_French"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A surname transferred from the nickname.",
        "A town in Geneva County, Alabama.",
        "An unincorporated community in Edwards County, Illinois.",
        "A township in Posey County, Indiana; from the surname."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "recordId": "aa4b9d463a9b8ca986b92de5f956a207986afa0509a71d4e1f67093dba66925f",
      "rawRecordSha256": "9e9fcf9d0863c645752007bbd3024d775502d3256f008d64b5b1498ad059fd40",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2399306
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 3,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Alternative letter-case form of black (“person having dark pigmentation of the skin”). · The player moving the black pieces.

adj

Alternative letter-case form of black (“of or relating to any of various ethnic groups having dark pigmentation of the skin”).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Capitalized to follow the usual capitalization patterns for ethnic groups (compare e.g. Hispanic, Arab), and also, perhaps, as a way to explicitly distinguish it from the color sense, which is not capitalized outside proper nouns.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "Capitalized",
      "capitalize"
    ],
    [
      "capitalization",
      "capitalisation"
    ],
    [
      "ethnic group",
      "ethnos"
    ],
    [
      "e.g.",
      "e.g."
    ],
    [
      "Hispanic",
      "Hispanic"
    ],
    [
      "Arab",
      "Arab"
    ],
    [
      "color sense",
      "black"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative letter-case form of black (“person having dark pigmentation of the skin”).",
        "The player moving the black pieces."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of"
      ],
      "recordId": "5f72ddd93f88235dd71af076908737d3d2b564d37d8641ddc020b710227bab5a",
      "rawRecordSha256": "091de63a236a66cd8ea026bcc08607d96968e70fd3f34965e008988bcf662c91",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2399308
    },
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative letter-case form of black (“of or relating to any of various ethnic groups having dark pigmentation of the skin”)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of",
        "not-comparable"
      ],
      "recordId": "8b484b839f6c53b1a7750b98c5ad87070ce455e8ec0322c3ba5452798fe2ba46",
      "rawRecordSha256": "92b5cb59c5d26b05dedc13c56e366a86fb36b2bd8560856872aeef18c7cace4e",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2399307
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Black →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-QmxhY2s