The term noble first appeared in the English language in the early thirteenth century in the Ancrene Riwle, a guide for nuns. It is believed to have been borrowed from the Old French word noble, which had a similar meaning to its modern usage and originated from the Latin word nobilis, meaning “famous” or “renowned”. The Latin term was originally spelled gnobilis and had the literal meaning of “knowable”, derived from the verb gnoscere meaning “to know”. This can be traced back to the Proto-Italic gnosko, ultimately stemming from the Proto-Indo-European reconstruction gneh, also meaning “to know”. The usage of the word noble reached its peak in 1617 and has been declining steadily since, with occasional spikes in popularity during the month of December for unknown reasons.
