Where does “dreads” come from?
Dreads comes from English dread with the English possessive suffix -'s, from Middle English -s, from Old French -esse, from Proto-Indo-European -es, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂énti meaning "opposite" or "facing."
dreads (English): dreadlocks; A Rastafarian person; Third-person...
Definitions
- dreadlocks; A Rastafarian person; Third-person...
Ancestry of “dreads”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | dreadlocks | A hairstyle worn by Rastafarians and others in... |
| 2 | Jamaican Creole | dreadlocks | — |
| 3 | Jamaican Creole | dread | — |
| 4 | English | dread | To fear greatly; To anticipate with fear; To be... |
| 5 | Middle English | dreden | — |
| 6 | Old English | drǣdan | to fear, dread |
| 7 | Old English | ondrǣdan | to fear, dread |
| 8 | Proto-West Germanic | andarādan | to be afraid, fear; to be in awe |
| 9 | Proto-West Germanic | anda- | against, opposing; in return, back; facing,... |
| 10 | Proto-Germanic | anda- | against, opposing; un-, de- |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énti | opposite; near; in front |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |