Where does “handmaiden” come from?
Handmaiden derives from English hand and maiden, which traces through Proto-Indo-European ḱm̥tóm and ḱwn̥tós back to Proto-Indo-European ḱwṓ.
handmaiden (English): Alternative form of handmaid
Definitions
- Alternative form of handmaid
Ancestry of “handmaiden”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | handmaid | A maid that waits at hand; a female servant or... |
| 2 | English | maid | A girl or an unmarried young woman; maiden; A... |
| 3 | Middle English | mayde | young woman |
| 4 | English | maiden | A girl or an unmarried young woman; A female... |
| 5 | Middle English | mayden | maiden |
| 6 | Old English | mægden | girl; virgin, young unmarried woman |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | magadīn | little girl |
| 8 | Proto-West Germanic | -īn | Creates adjectives from nouns with the sense... |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | -īnaz | -en |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -iHnos | Creates adjectives of materials |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -no- | adjectival suffix |