*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of Lewis

From Middle English Lewis, Lowis, from Anglo-Norman, from Old French Louis, from Frankish *Hlūdawīg. Doublet of Louis.

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 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 male given name from Frankish. · An English surname originating as a patronymic. · The title given to a partially apprenticed Freemason who is normally the Master or Son of a practicing Freemason; one practising or learning the degrees of Freemasonry after introduction to the degrees and before full induction or before becoming a Worshipful Brother. · A census-designated place in Montezuma County, Colorado.

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

From Middle English Lewis, Lowis, from Anglo-Norman, from Old French Louis, from Frankish *Hlūdawīg. Doublet of Louis.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionLewisenm
  • Derivation mentionLouisfro

This page abbreviates 11 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.

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    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "Lewis"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English Lewis"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "xno",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Anglo-Norman"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "Louis"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French Louis"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "frk",
        "3": "*Hlūdawīg"
      },
      "expansion": "Frankish *Hlūdawīg"
    },
    {
      "name": "dbt",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "Louis"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of Louis"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Lewis",
      "Lewis#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "Lowis",
      "Lowis#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "Louis",
      "Louis#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "*Hlūdawīg",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/Hlūdawīg"
    ],
    [
      "Louis",
      "Louis#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A male given name from Frankish.",
        "An English surname originating as a patronymic.",
        "The title given to a partially apprenticed Freemason who is normally the Master or Son of a practicing Freemason; one practising or learning the degrees of Freemasonry after introduction to the degrees and before full induction or before becoming a Worshipful Brother.",
        "A census-designated place in Montezuma County, Colorado."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
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    "lexicalSenses": 11,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
name

A surname from Irish [in turn originating as a patronymic].

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

An anglicization of Irish Lobhaois, itself from Old French Louis.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ga",
        "3": "Lobhaois"
      },
      "expansion": "Irish Lobhaois"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "Louis"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French Louis"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Lobhaois",
      "Lobhaois#Irish"
    ],
    [
      "Louis",
      "Louis#Old_French"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
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      "glosses": [
        "A surname from Irish [in turn originating as a patronymic]."
      ],
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  }
}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
name

A surname from Welsh [in turn originating as a patronymic].

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

An adopted anglicization of Welsh Llywelyn, from Old Welsh, from Proto-Brythonic *Lluɣβelen, from Proto-Celtic *Lugus + *Belinos, whose origin is disputed; see Belenus.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cy",
        "3": "Llywelyn"
      },
      "expansion": "Welsh Llywelyn"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "owl",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Welsh"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cel-bry-pro",
        "3": "*Lluɣβelen"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Brythonic *Lluɣβelen"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cel-pro",
        "3": "*Lugus"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Celtic *Lugus"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Llywelyn",
      "Llywelyn#Welsh"
    ],
    [
      "*Lluɣβelen",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Brythonic/Lluɣβelen"
    ],
    [
      "*Lugus",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/Lugus"
    ],
    [
      "*Belinos",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/Belinos"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A surname from Welsh [in turn originating as a patronymic]."
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}

Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
name

Ellipsis of the Isle of Lewis: an island of Scotland, United Kingdom.

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

Derived from Scottish Gaelic Leòdhas, of uncertain origin; traditionally referred to Old Norse Ljóðahús, from ljóð (“song, poem”) + hús (“house”); but may be related to the Pictish name of the island recorded in Ptolemy's Geography as Λίμνου (Límnou).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gd",
        "3": "Leòdhas"
      },
      "expansion": "Scottish Gaelic Leòdhas"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "Ljóðahús"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse Ljóðahús"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "xpi",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Pictish"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Leòdhas",
      "Leòdhas#Scottish_Gaelic"
    ],
    [
      "Ljóðahús",
      "Ljóðahús#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "ljóð",
      "ljóð#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "hús",
      "hús#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "Λίμνου",
      "Λίμνου#Ancient_Greek"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "Ellipsis of the Isle of Lewis: an island of Scotland, United Kingdom."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "abbreviation",
        "alt-of",
        "ellipsis"
      ],
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}

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 Lewis →

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-TGV3aXM