Where does “back forty” come from?

back forty (English) comes from English back, from French bac, from French baccalauréat, from Medieval Latin baccalaureatus, from Latin baccalaureus, from Latin laurea, from Latin laurus, from English -aceous — Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems.

back forty (English): The remote part of a farm; The most remote or...

Definitions

  1. The remote part of a farm; The most remote or...

Ancestry of “back forty”, step by step

back forty traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English back

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbackNear the rear; Not current; Far from the main...
2Frenchbacferry; vat; high school exit exam in France; A...
3Frenchbaccalauréatbaccalaureat; bachelor's degree
4Medieval Latinbaccalaureatusbachelor's degree
5Latinbaccalaureusbachelor
6Latinlaurealaurel, bay tree; crown, wreath or branch of...
7Latinlauruslaurel tree; laurels; a crown of laurel
8English-aceousOf, relating to, resembling or containing the...
9Latin-āceusaceous; resembling, having the nature of, forming, belonging to
10Latin-āxish, -y
11Latin-iumSuffix used to form abstract nouns, sometimes...
12Latin-iusforming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter...
13Proto-Italic-jōsForms comparative adjectives
14Proto-Indo-European-yósCreates adjectives from noun or verb stems

via English forty

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfortyThe cardinal number occurring after thirty-nine...
2EnglishYA figure or mark in the shape of the letter Y; A...
3EnglishyuriA narrative or visual work featuring a romance or...
4Japanese百合lily
5Japanese連用形an inflectional category: the continuative or...
6Japanese見るto see, to watch, to observe, to look at...
7Japanesea dream; a vision; leaving reality to the state...
8Old Japanesea dream
9Japanesean order in biology: smaller than a class, bigger...
10Middle Chinese
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yósEvery word from Latin -iumEvery word from Latin -ius