Where does “fee” come from?
Fee comes from Middle English fe, from Old English feoh meaning cattle or property, from Proto-Germanic fehu, which derives from Latin feudum through Frankish fehu, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European peḱ-.
fee (English): A right to the use of a superior's land, as a...
Definitions
- A right to the use of a superior's land, as a...
Ancestry of “fee”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | fee | Alternative form of fey |
| 2 | Old French | fieu | fief |
| 3 | Medieval Latin | fevum | fief, fee |
| 4 | Latin | feudum | A fief, fee |
| 5 | Frankish | fehu | livestock, cattle; cattle, owndom, property, fee;... |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | fehu | livestock, cattle; property; name of the F-rune |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | péḱu | livestock |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | peḱ- | to pluck; livestock; wealth |