Where does “forefather” come from?

Forefather comes from Middle English forefader, from Old English fōrefæder, a compound of "fore" (before) and "fæder" (father).

forefather (English): Ancestor; Cultural ancestor; one who originated...

Definitions

  1. Ancestor; Cultural ancestor; one who originated...

Ancestry of “forefather”, step by step

forefather traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English forefader

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishforefader—
2Old Englishforefæderforefather
3Old Englishfæderfather
4Proto-West Germanicfaderfather
5Proto-Germanicfadērfather
6Proto-Indo-Europeanph₂tḗrfather
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpeh₂-to protect; to shepherd

via Old Norse forfaðir

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norseforfaðir—
2Middle Englishvorvader—
3Old Englishfōrefæderforefather

Words derived from “forefather”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European peh₂- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European ph₂tḗr →Every word from Proto-Germanic fadēr →