Editing Baron (section)

==Etymology==
The word ''[[:wikt:baron|baron]]'' comes from the [[Old French]] {{lang|fro|baron}}, from a [[Late Latin]] {{wikt-lang|la|barō}} "man; servant, [[soldier]], [[mercenary]]" (so used in [[Salic law]]; [[Alemannic law]] has {{lang|la|barus}} in the same sense). The scholar [[Isidore of Seville]] in the 7th century thought the word was from [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] {{wikt-lang|grc|βᾰρῠ́ς}} "heavy" (because of the "heavy work" done by mercenaries), but the word is presumably of [[Old Frankish]] origin, cognate with [[Old English language|Old English]] {{wikt-lang|ang|beorn}} meaning "warrior, nobleman". [[Lucius Annaeus Cornutus|Cornutus]] in the first century already reports a word {{lang|la|barones}} which he took to be of Gaulish origin. He glosses it as meaning {{lang|la|servos militum}} and explains it as meaning "stupid", by reference to classical Latin {{wikt-lang|la|bārō}} "simpleton, dunce";<ref>{{lang|la|servos militum, qui utique stultissimi sunt, servos videlicet stultorum}}</ref> because of this early reference, the word has also been suggested to derive from an otherwise unknown [[Celtic languages|Celtic]] {{lang|cel|*bar}}, but the ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' takes this to be "a figment".<ref>''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]''; see also ''[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=baron Online Etymology Dictionary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627144129/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=baron |date=27 June 2017 }}''</ref>