Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “heath” come from?

Heath derives from Middle English heeth, Old English hæfþ, Proto-Germanic haiþī, and Proto-Indo-European kayt-, ultimately referring to uncultivated open land.

heath (English): A tract of level uncultivated land with sandy...

Definitions

  1. A tract of level uncultivated land with sandy...

Ancestry of “heath”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishheethheath, uncultivated land
2Old Englishhǣþheath, untilled land, waste; heather; heath;...
3Proto-West Germanichaiþiuncultivated land, wasteland
4Proto-Germanichaiþīheath, wasteland
5Proto-Indo-Europeanḱayt-forest, wasteland, pasture

Words derived from “heath”

  • heathy
  • heathland
  • heathlike
  • heathclad
  • heathwort
  • heathless
  • heathcropper
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱayt- →