Where does “footpath” come from?
Footpath derives from Middle English fot and pæþ, the Old English words for foot and path, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European pṓds meaning foot.
footpath (English): A path for pedestrians
Ancestry of “footpath”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | foot | A biological structure found in many animals that... |
| 2 | Middle English | fot | foot; The bottom, lower part or foundation of... |
| 3 | Old English | fōt | foot |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | fōt | foot |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fōts | foot |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pṓds | foot |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | póds | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ped- | to walk, to step; to stumble, to fall |