Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “beekeeping” come from?

beekeeping (English) comes from English keeping, from English keep, from Middle English kepen, from Old English cēpan, from Proto-West Germanic *kōpijan, from Proto-Germanic kōpijaną, from Proto-Indo-European ǵab-.

beekeeping (English): The practice or profession of keeping and caring...

Definitions

  1. The practice or profession of keeping and caring...

Ancestry of “beekeeping”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishkeepingconformity or harmony; charge or care;...
2EnglishkeepTo continue in ; not to intermit or fall from; to...
3Middle Englishkepento keep, guard, look after, watch
4Old Englishcēpanto seize, hold, observe
5Proto-West Germanic*kōpijan—
6Proto-Germanickōpijanąto look after, observe; to watch, keep, care for
7Proto-Indo-Europeanǵab-—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵab- →