Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “airspace” come from?

Airspace derives from English air and space, where space comes from Middle English and Anglo-Norman eir from Latin spatium meaning "extent or distance," and air from Latin heres ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰeh₁-.

airspace (English): A specified portion of the atmosphere, especially...

Definitions

  1. A specified portion of the atmosphere, especially...

Ancestry of “airspace”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishspace"Of time."; "Unlimited or generalized extent,...
2Middle Englishspace—
3Old Frenchespacespace; room; duration
4LatinspatiumSpace, room, extent; Distance between points; A...
5Proto-Indo-Europeanspéh₁-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanspeh₁-to succeed, to prosper
Every word from Proto-Indo-European speh₁- →