The Ogre May Be Named After a Roman God
An ogre is a man-eating giant of folklore. Its name possibly descends from Orcus, god of the underworld.
An ogre is a man-eating giant in folklore, and by extension a cruel or frightening person. The likeliest origin is Latin *Orcus*, a Roman god of the underworld and punisher of broken oaths, whose name passed into Italian as *orco*, a monster. The same source probably gives Tolkien's *orc*, which he took from an Old English word for a demon. The French writer Charles Perrault popularised *ogre* in his fairy tales of 1697, and English borrowed it from him.
- A man-eating giant. *A fairy-tale ogre.*
- A cruel person. *An ogre of a boss.*
- Ogress — a female ogre. *An ogress.*
- Orc — a likely relative. *An orc.*
- Latin — *Orcus*. *The probable root.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | ogre | An ogre. |
| Plural | ogres | Ogres. |
| Feminine | ogress | An ogress. |
| Adjective | ogreish | Ogreish. |
| Italian | orco | A monster. |
- The ogre guarded the bridge.Folklore.
- He is no ogre really.Figurative.
- Perrault popularised the word.History.
Monsters named from mythology
- Ogre — probably from Orcus, god of the underworld
- Titan — from the elder Greek gods
- Fury — from the Erinyes, avenging spirits
- Panic — from the god Pan, who caused sudden fear
- Nemesis — from the goddess of retribution
French *ogre*, probably from Latin *Orcus*, a god of the underworld, popularised by Perrault in 1697.
Where does ogre come from?
Probably from Latin Orcus, a Roman god of the underworld, by way of Italian orco, a monster.
Is orc the same word?
Probably related. Tolkien took orc from an Old English word for a demon, which likely descends from the same Latin source.