Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “heritage” come from?

Heritage comes from Old French eritage, from Latin heres meaning heir, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰeh₁ro-, derived from the root ǵʰeh₁-.

heritage (English): An inheritance; property that may be inherited; A...

Definitions

  1. An inheritance; property that may be inherited; A...

Ancestry of “heritage”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishheritage—
2Old Frencheritageheritage
3Old Frencheriterto inherit
4Latinhērēditō—
5Latinhērēditas—
6Latin-tās—
7Proto-Indo-European-teh₂tsUsed to form nouns representing state of being
8Proto-Indo-European-teh₂Used to form nouns representing state of being
9Proto-Indo-European-tósCreates verbal adjectives from verb stems

Words derived from “heritage”

  • nonheritage
  • multiheritage
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tós →