Word meaning ? American, Russian, Asian, Hawaiian, Canadian.what does ” ian ” mean ?
onelight asked:
The ” ian ” sound at the end of words such as American, Russian, Asian, Mexican, Canadian, Hawaiian, Canadian, etc. . . . Why do words depecting nationalities / cultures all have the ” ian ” sound at the end of it ? What does ” ian ” mean ?
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The ” ian ” sound at the end of words such as American, Russian, Asian, Mexican, Canadian, Hawaiian, Canadian, etc. . . . Why do words depecting nationalities / cultures all have the ” ian ” sound at the end of it ? What does ” ian ” mean ?
It seems there must be a common thread meaning to the ” ian ” sound.
Just wondering.
Any insight / answers ?
.
” bdbbdb ” . . . You’re ” bet ” might be right…Yet, I’m still wondering…Which is why I’m asking here in Language section of Yahoo Answers. Any answers from someone who knows ? Thanks much.
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May 30th, 2009 at 10:01 am
i bet it has someting to do with greek or latin
May 31st, 2009 at 10:22 pm
I think it means of….
June 4th, 2009 at 2:10 am
a member of… citizen of….
June 6th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
” The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.
–ian
SUFFIX:1. Of, relating to, or resembling: Bostonian. 2. One relating to, belonging to, or resembling: academician.
ETYMOLOGY:Middle English -ien, -ian, from Old French -ien, from Latin -inus, adj. and n. suff.
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June 9th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
-an or -ian in English is a suffix ( word ending) which means “related to” or “one that is”.(inherited from Latin).
If you are interested in other common word endings, have a look at this site:
or this:
June 13th, 2009 at 2:40 am
Also interested to know ,
will look into all of these.
June 13th, 2009 at 4:05 am
native of.