Where does “mair” come from?
Mare comes from Middle English mare, Old English mīere, Proto-Germanic miurijǭ, and Proto-Indo-European mer-, ultimately deriving from the root mark- meaning to shine or gleam.
mair (English): more
Ancestry of “mair”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | mair | — |
| 2 | Old English | māra | more |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | *maiʀō | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | maizô | comparative degree of *mikilaz; more |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | mē- | to measure; endeavour, will, temper; many |