Viscount
/ˈvaɪ.kaʊnt/noun
A noble rank below an earl or count and above a baron.
Did you know?The word entered English through Anglo-Norman and Old French, where it originally meant a deputy count; over time the title hardened into a hereditary rank, while the old spelling and pronunciation drifted apart.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*weik-
“to settle, dwell; a clan or settlement”
Latin
Latin
vīcus
“a village, district, or settlement”
Late Latin
Latin
vicecomes
“deputy count; an official acting in place of a count”
Old French
Old French
visconte
“a viscount; originally a deputy count”
Middle English
English
viscount
“a nobleman of rank below an earl and above a baron”
Modern English
English
viscount
“a noble rank below an earl or count and above a baron”