Where does “cuz” come from?
Cuz is an informal shortening of cousin, which derives from Middle English cosyn, Old French cosin, and Latin consobrinus, meaning a mother's sister's child.
cuz (English): because; cousin
Definitions
- because; cousin
Ancestry of “cuz”, step by step
cuz traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English cousin
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | cousin | The child of a person's uncle or aunt; a first... |
| 2 | Middle English | cosyn | A member of one's family; one's partner, relative... |
| 3 | Old French | cosin | cousin |
| 4 | Latin | cōnsōbrīnus | a first cousin, cousin-german |
| 5 | Latin | cōn- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing together of several objects |
| 6 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 7 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 11 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 12 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 13 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 14 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 15 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 16 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 17 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via Proto-Finno-Permic *čaše
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-Finno-Permic | *čaše | — |