Where does “earldom” come from?
Earldom derives from Middle English erldom, from Old English eorldōm, a compound of eorl (nobleman) and -dōm (domain or office).
earldom (English): The rank of being an earl; The territory...
Definitions
- The rank of being an earl; The territory...
Ancestry of “earldom”, step by step
earldom traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English DOM
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | DOM | Initialism of date of marriage; Initialism of... |
| 2 | English | dominance | The state of being dominant; of prime importance;... |
| 3 | English | -ance | Added to an adjective or verb to form a noun... |
| 4 | Middle English | -aunce | Forms nouns indicating states or processes, usually from verbs or other nouns; -ance |
| 5 | Old French | -ance | ance (suffix used to form nouns) |
| 6 | Latin | -ia | Used to form a feminine abstract noun, usually... |
| 7 | Latin | -ius | forming adjectives from nouns; nominative neuter... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -jōs | Forms comparative adjectives |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yós | Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems |
via Middle English erldom
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | erldom | A county or earldom; a region supervised or ruled... |
| 2 | Old English | eorldōm | earldom |
| 3 | Old English | -dōm | -dom: state, condition, power, dominion,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | -dōm | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -dōmaz | Forms nouns denoting the condition or state of... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰóh₁mos | that which is put, placed |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁- | to do, put, place |