Where does “arse-licking” come from?

arse-licking (English) comes from English licking, from English lick, from German leute, from Middle High German liute, from Old High German liuti, from Proto-West Germanic *liud(i), from Proto-Germanic liudīz, from Proto-Indo-European h₁léwdʰis — to grow; people.

arse-licking (English): Sycophancy; Anilingus

Definitions

  1. Sycophancy; Anilingus

Ancestry of “arse-licking”, step by step

arse-licking traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English licking

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishlickingAn act of licking; A severe beating; A great loss...
2EnglishlickThe act of licking; a stroke of the tongue; The...
3Germanleutepeople several individual persons, a group of people in general, esp. of one kind or another, folk (folks), peeps slang, guys (boys and/or girls)
4Middle High Germanliute
5Old High Germanliutipeople, subordinates
6Proto-West Germanic*liud(i)
7Proto-Germanicliudīzman, person
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁léwdʰispeople
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁lewdʰ-to grow; people

via English arse

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglisharseThe buttocks or more specifically, the anus; A...
2Middle Englisharsarse, anus; bottom, buttocks; plural of art
3Old Frencharz
4Latinartessecond-person singular present active subjunctive...
5Latinarsart; skill, craft, handicraft, trade, power
6Proto-Italicartis
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂értisfitting
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂er-to fit, to fix, to put together

Words derived from “arse-licking

Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁lewdʰ-Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁léwdʰisEvery word from Proto-Germanic liudīz