bran: [13] English borrowed bran from Old French bran, but its ultimate source is unclear. Modern French bran means ‘excrement’, and if this had always been a part of the word’s makeup it might have been possible to suggest a Celtic origin, perhaps a Gaulish *brenno- (Welsh braen and Irish brean both mean ‘manure’), but English bran appears never to have meant anything but ‘cereal husks’. It may ultimately be connected with burn. => burn[bran etymology, bran origin, 英语词源]