Eques
/ˈe.kweːs/noun
In ancient Rome, a member of the equestrian class, originally a horseman.
Did you know?Eques comes from the same Indo-European root as modern words like equine, equestrian, and even cavalry’s deeper horse-language ancestry, because social rank was once built on who could afford a horse.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₁ekʷos
“horse”
Old Latin
Latin
equos
“horse”
Classical Latin
Latin
eques
“horseman; mounted soldier”
Late Latin
Latin
equester
“pertaining to horsemen or the equestrian order”
English
English
equestrian
“relating to horses or horseback riding”
Explore more surprising origins