Longobard
/ˈlɒŋɡəˌbɑːrd/noun
A member of a Germanic people who ruled much of Italy in the early Middle Ages; also used historically for their language or anything relating to them.
Did you know?The ethnic name is traditionally explained from Proto-Germanic *langaz + *bardaz, and medieval writers often treated such tribal names as markers of identity, power, and fear.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*Langabardaz
““Long-beard,” a tribal ethnonym”
Late Antiquity
Latin
Langobardi
“The Lombards, a Germanic people known in Roman sources”
Early Medieval
Latin
Longobardi
“A common medieval Latin spelling for the same people”
Old English
OE
Langbeardas
“The Lombards, referred to in Anglo-Saxon historical writing”
Modern English
English
Longobard
“A Lombard; used especially in historical contexts”