Where does “godmother” come from?
Godmother comes from Middle English godmoder, from Old English godmōdor, a compound of god and mōdor meaning mother.
godmother (English): A woman present at the christening of a baby who...
Definitions
- A woman present at the christening of a baby who...
Ancestry of “godmother”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | mother | A female who has given birth to a baby; A human... |
| 2 | Middle English | modren | plural of moder |
| 3 | Middle English | -en | Denotes the past participle form when attached to... |
| 4 | Old English | -en | mæġþ + API → mæġden; cocc + API → cycen, cicen;... |
| 5 | Old Norse | -inn | Used to create adjectives from nouns, meaning... |
| 6 | Proto-Norse | -īna- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -īnaz | -en |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -iHnos | Creates adjectives of materials |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -no- | adjectival suffix |
Words derived from “godmother”