Where does “firstly” come from?
Firstly comes from Middle English -ly, Old English -līċ, Proto-Germanic furistaz, and Proto-Indo-European per-, ultimately deriving from a root meaning to go forward or through.
firstly (English): In the first place; before anything else; first
Definitions
- In the first place; before anything else; first
Ancestry of “firstly”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | first | Preceding all others of a series or kind; the... |
| 2 | Middle English | ferst | — |
| 3 | Old English | fyrest | first |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | furist | at first, firstly, in the first place |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | furistaz | first, foremost |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | furi | for, before; before, forward |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | preh₂- | before, in front |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |