Where does “citizenry” come from?
Citizenry comes from English citizen plus the suffix -ry, with citizen derived from Middle English citezein, Old French citezein, and Latin civitas meaning community or state.
citizenry (English): The group of all citizens
Definitions
- The group of all citizens
Ancestry of “citizenry”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | citizen | A resident of a city or town, especially one with... |
| 2 | Middle English | citeseyn | A freeman or burgher: a legally-recognized member... |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | citesain | burgher; city-dweller |
| 4 | Old French | citeain | — |
| 5 | Old French | cité | city |
| 6 | Latin | cīvitās | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | keiwis | society; citizen |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱey- | to be lying down; to settle |