Where does “east” come from?
East comes from Middle English est, from Old English ēast, from Proto-Germanic austrą, from Proto-Indo-European aus-, from Proto-Indo-European h₂éwsros, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ews-.
east (English): One of the four principal compass points,...
Definitions
- One of the four principal compass points,...
Ancestry of “east”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | est | east, easternness; A location to the south; the... |
| 2 | Old English | ēast | east; eastern |
| 3 | Old Norse | austr | east |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | austrą | east; east, eastward |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | austraz | east, eastern |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | *h₂éwsteros | — |
Words derived from “east”