Where does “ey” come from?
Ey comes from Middle English ey, from Latin ei, from Proto-Germanic awjō, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ekʷeh₂, ultimately deriving from the root h₂egʰ-.
ey (English): An egg; An island; 1975 August 23, Black, Judie,...
Definitions
- An egg; An island; 1975 August 23, Black, Judie,...
Ancestry of “ey”, step by step
ey traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English they
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | they | A group of people, animals, plants, or objects... |
| 2 | English | the'e | Pronunciation spelling of there |
| 3 | English | there | In a place or location at some distance from the... |
| 4 | Old English | þær | there |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | þār | there |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | þar | there, in that place |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | tar- | there |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | to- | it; that; the, that |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | só | this; that |
via Middle English ei
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | ei | An egg, especially of a chicken or other fowl |
| 2 | Old English | ǣġ | egg |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | aij | egg |
| 4 | English | ice | Water in frozen form; Any frozen volatile... |
| 5 | Middle English | is | ice; That which is short-lived like ice; icy... |
| 6 | Old English | īs | ice |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | īs | ice |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | īsą | ice |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁eyH- | ice, frost |