monger

Origin

The noun is derived from Middle English mongere, mangere (“dealer, merchant, trader”), from Old English mangere (“dealer, merchant, trader”), from Proto-West Germanic *mangārī (“dealer, merchant, monger”), from Latin mangō (“dealer, trader”) + Proto-West Germanic *-ārī (suffix forming agent nouns, especially denoting occupations). The further etymology of mangō is uncertain; the following possibilities have been suggested: * From Ancient Greek μαγγανεύω (manganeúō, “to use charms or philtres; to cheat, play tricks; to dress food artificially to make it appear better”), from μάγγᾰνον (mángănon, “means of bewitching, charm, philtre”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *meng- (“to dress, embellish, trim”); or from Arabic ن ج ل (n j l, root relating to pouring out or thrusting)) + -εύω (-eúō, suffix forming denominative verbs of activity or condition). * From Latin *manicō, *manigō (“deal, trade; to handle, manage (?)”), from manus (“hand”); further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)meh₂- (“to beckon, signal”), or *mon-u-. The verb is either derived from the noun, or is a back-formation from mongering (adjective or noun).