Where does “kindly” come from?
Kindly derives from Middle English kyndely, from Old English cyndelīċ, meaning natural or innate.
kindly (English): Having a kind personality; kind, warmhearted,...
Definitions
- Having a kind personality; kind, warmhearted,...
Ancestry of “kindly”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | kyndely | — |
| 2 | Old English | cyndelīċ | natural, kindly |
| 3 | Old English | cynde | innate |
| 4 | Old English | cynd | generation, race |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *kundi | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | kinþiz | kind, race |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵénh₁tis | birth, production |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |
Words derived from “kindly”