Where does “children” come from?
Children comes from Middle English children, from Old English ċildru, the plural of ċild, from Proto-Germanic kelþaz, from Proto-Indo-European gelt-, related to Proto-Indo-European gel-.
children (English): plural of child
Ancestry of “children”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | children | plural of child |
| 2 | Middle English | childre | plural of child |
| 3 | Old English | ċildru | — |
| 4 | Old English | ċild | child, youth; fetus; female baby; child |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | kelþaz | fetus; newborn; infant; child |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵelt- | womb |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵel- | to swallow; swallow |
Words derived from “children”