Where does “Pew” come from?
Pew derives from Welsh ap or Welsh fab, words meaning "son" that were used as a patronymic prefix in Welsh names.
Pew (English): One of the long benches in a church, seating several persons, usually fixed to the floor and facing the chancel
Definitions
- One of the long benches in a church, seating several persons, usually fixed to the floor and facing the chancel
Ancestry of “Pew”, step by step
Pew traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Welsh ap
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Welsh | ap | A patronymic indicator; son of |
| 2 | Welsh | fab | Soft mutation of mab |
| 3 | Welsh | mab | boy, son, infant, child of either sex, minor, youth |
| 4 | Old Welsh | map | son |
| 5 | Proto-Brythonic | mab | son |
| 6 | Proto-Celtic | makʷos | son |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | mh₂ḱwos | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | meh₂ḱ- | to raise, increase; long |
via Middle English pewe
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | pewe | pew bench seat in a church |
| 2 | Middle French | puie | balustrade |
| 3 | Latin | podia | A rope fastened to one of the lower corners of a... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | πόδιον | little foot; base |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | πούς | foot; leg; Greek foot or pous, the ancient Greek... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pṓds | foot |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | póds | foot |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ped- | to walk, to step; to stumble, to fall |