Where does “Sheppard” come from?
Sheppard comes from Middle English schepherde, from Old English sċēaphierde, combining Old English sċēap (sheep) and hierde (herder), ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic hirdijaz and herdō, tracing back to Proto-Indo-European kerdʰ-.
Ancestry of “Sheppard”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | schepherde | shepherd |
| 2 | Old English | sċēaphierde | shepherd |
| 3 | Old English | sċēap | sheep |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | skāp | sheep |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | skapą | shape |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | skapjaną | to make, to create; to shape |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | skab- | to cut, split, hew, shape; to cut, split, carve,... |