Where does “courthouse” come from?
Courthouse derives from English court and house, where court comes from Old French cort, from Latin cohors meaning an enclosed yard or group of people assembled together, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to enclose or assemble.
courthouse (English): A public building housing courts of law; The...
Definitions
- A public building housing courts of law; The...
Ancestry of “courthouse”, step by step
courthouse traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English court
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | court | An enclosed space; a courtyard; an uncovered area... |
| 2 | Middle English | court | A courtyard; an enclosed space |
| 3 | Old French | cort | court |
| 4 | Latin | cōrs | — |
| 5 | Latin | cohors | a court; a farmyard or enclosure; a retinue or... |
| 6 | Latin | co- | allomorph of con- |
| 7 | Latin | cōn- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing together of several objects |
| 8 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 9 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 10 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 13 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 14 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 15 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 16 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 17 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 18 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 19 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via English House
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | House | A particular chamber of political representation |
| 2 | Middle English | hous | house, residence; house of worship, temple;... |
| 3 | Old English | hūs | dwelling, shelter, house; house |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hūs | house |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hūsą | house |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)kewH- | to cover, bedeck; cover |