From Latin 'gentīlis' (of good family), from 'gēns' (clan), from PIE *ǵenh₁- — shifted from 'noble-born' to 'kind and mild.'
Mild in temperament or behaviour; kind and tender; moderate in action, effect, or degree.
From Old French 'gentil,' meaning 'high-born, noble, courteous,' from Latin 'gentīlis,' meaning 'of the same clan or family, of a good family,' from 'gēns' (genitive 'gentis'), meaning 'clan, tribe, race, family,' from the root 'gignere' (to beget), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (to give birth, to beget). The semantic shift from 'noble-born' to 'kind and mild' reflects the medieval ideal that true nobility of birth should manifest as refinement of character. Key roots: gēns (gentis) (Latin: "clan, tribe, family
The word 'gentleman' originally meant a man of good birth (gentle + man), not a man of good manners. Chaucer's famous line 'He was a verray, parfit, gentil knyght' means the knight was truly, perfectly noble — both in birth and behaviour. The shift from 'noble-born' to 'kind-mannered' encodes a moral argument: that true nobility lies in conduct, not lineage.