Origin and history of pendant

pendant(n.)

early 14c., pendaunt, "loose, hanging part of anything," whether ornamental or useful, from Anglo-French pendaunt (c. 1300), Old French pendant (13c.), noun uses of the present-participle adjective from pendre "to hang," from Latin pendere "to hang," from PIE *(s)pend-, extended form of root *(s)pen- "to draw, stretch, spin." Meaning "dangling part of an earring" is attested from 1550s. Nautical sense of "long tapering flag" is recorded from late 15c. "In this sense presumably a corruption of pennon" [OED]. In 14c.-16c. also "the testicles." As an adjective, the same as pendent, which is now the usual spelling.

also from early 14c.

Entries linking to pendant

pendent(adj.)

"hanging, suspended," c. 1600 respelling of Middle English pendaunt "hanging, hanging down, overhanging" (late 14c., from Old French pendant "hanging;" see pendant) on the model of its Latin original, pendentem. Related: Pendently.

pennant(n.)

1610s, "a rope for hoisting," probably a blend or confusion of pendant in the nautical sense of "suspended rope" and pennon "long, narrow flag." Use for "flag on a warship" is by 1690s; as "flag long in the fly as compared with its hoist," 1815. The meaning "flag symbolizing a sports championship" (especially baseball) is from 1880; as a synonym for "championship" it is attested by 1915.

*(s)pen-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to draw, stretch, spin."

It might form all or part of: append; appendix; avoirdupois; compendium; compensate; compensation; counterpoise; depend; dispense; equipoise; expend; expense; expensive; hydroponics; impend; painter (n.2) "rope or chain that holds an anchor to a ship's side;" pansy; penchant; pend; pendant; pendentive; pending; pendular; pendulous; pendulum; pension; pensive; penthouse; perpendicular; peso; poise; ponder; ponderous; pound (n.1) "measure of weight;" prepend; prepense; preponderate; propensity; recompense; span (n.1) "distance between two objects;" span (n.2) "two animals driven together;" spangle; spanner; spend; spider; spin; spindle; spinner; spinster; stipend; suspend; suspension.

It might also be the source of: Latin pendere "to hang, to cause to hang," pondus "weight" (perhaps the notion is the weight of a thing measured by how much it stretches a cord), pensare "to weigh, consider;" Greek ponos "toil," ponein "to toil;" Lithuanian spendžiu, spęsti "lay a snare;" Old Church Slavonic peti "stretch, strain," pato "fetter," pina "I span;" Old English spinnan "to spin," spannan "to join, fasten; stretch, span;" Armenian henum "I weave;" Greek patos "garment," literally "that which is spun;" Lithuanian pinu "I plait, braid," spandau "I spin;" Middle Welsh cy-ffiniden "spider;" Old English spinnan "draw out and twist fibers into thread," spiðra "spider," literally "spinner."