Where does “king” come from?
King comes from Old English cyng, from Proto-West Germanic kuning, from Proto-Germanic kuningaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- meaning to beget or produce.
king (English): A male monarch; a man who heads a monarchy. If...
Definitions
- A male monarch; a man who heads a monarchy. If...
Ancestry of “king”, step by step
king traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English king
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | king | king monarch |
| 2 | Old English | cyning | king |
| 3 | Old English | tūn | enclosure, yard; place; dwelling |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | tūn | fence |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | tūną | fence; enclosure |
| 6 | Gaulish | dunum | fort; hill, hillfort |
| 7 | Proto-Celtic | dūnom | stronghold, rampart |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |