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Origin and history of promontory

promontory(n.)

"high point of land or rock projecting into the sea beyond the line of a coast," 1540s, from French promontoire (15c.) and directly from Medieval Latin promontorium, altered (by influence of Latin mons "mount, hill") from Latin promunturium "mountain ridge, headland," which is probably related to prominere "jut out" (see prominent). Related: Promontorial; promontorious.

also from 1540s

Entries linking to promontory

prominent(adj.)

mid-15c., "projecting, jutting out, standing out beyond the line or surface of something," from Latin prominentem (nominative prominens) "prominent," present participle of prominere "jut or stand out, be prominent, overhang," from pro "before, forward" (see pro-) + -minere "project, jut out," which is related to mons "hill" (from PIE root *men- (2) "to project").

Of features, "conspicuous, standing out so as to strike the mind or eye," from 1759; of persons, "notable, leading, eminent, standing out from among the multitude," from 1849. Related: Prominently.

*men-(2)

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to project." 

It might form all or part of: amenable; amount; cismontane; demeanor; dismount; eminence; eminent; imminence; imminent; menace; minacious; minatory; mons; montage; montagnard; monte; mount (n.1) "hill, mountain;" mount (v.) "to get up on;" mountain; mountebank; mouth; Osmond; Piedmont; promenade; prominence; prominent; promontory; remount; surmount; ultramontane.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit manya "nape of the neck;" Latin mons "mountain," eminere "to stand out;" Old Irish muin "neck," Welsh mwnwgl "neck," mwng "mane;" Welsh mynydd "mountain." 

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    head
    Old English heafod "top of the body," also "upper end of a slope," also "chief person, leader, ruler; capital city," from Proto-Germanic *haubid (source also of Old Saxon hobid, Old Norse hofuð, Old Frisian haved, Middle Dutch hovet, Dutch hoofd, Old High German houbit, German Ha
    cliff
    Old English clif "steep and rugged face of a rocky mass, promontory, steep slope," from Proto-Germanic *kliban (source also...of Old Saxon clif, Old Norse klif, Middle Dutch klippe, Dutch klip, Old High German klep, German Klippe "cliff, promontory...
    shaw
    from Old English sceaga "copse," cognate with North Frisian skage "farthest edge of cultivated land," Old Norse skage "promontory...
    mull
    "promontory" (in Scottish place names), late 14c., perhaps from Old Norse muli "a jutting crag, projecting ridge (between...
    gore
    "triangular piece of ground," Old English gara "corner, point of land, cape, promontory," from Proto-Germanic *gaizon- (source...
    holm
    from the basic one of "island:" "'raised ground in marsh, enclosure of marginal land, land in a river-bend, river meadow, promontory...
    pinnacle
    c. 1300, "mountain top, sharp peak, promontory," from Old French pinacle "top, gable" (13c.) and directly from Late Latin...
    elevation
    late 14c., "a rising, height of something, height to which something is elevated," from Old French elevation and directly from Latin elevationem (nominative elevatio) "a lifting up," noun of action from past-participle stem of elevare "lift up, raise," figuratively, "to lighten,
    pinot
    type of grape vine used in wine-making, 1912, American English variant spelling of French pineau (attested in English from 1763), name of a family of wine grapes, from pin "pine tree" (see pine (n.)) + diminutive suffix -eau. So called from the shape of the grape clusters. Varian
    point
    c. 1200, pointe, "minute amount, single item in a whole; sharp end of a sword, etc.," a merger of two words, both ultimately from Latin pungere "to prick, pierce," from a nasalized form of PIE root *peuk- "to prick." The Latin neuter past participle punctum was used as a noun, me

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