Where does “my” come from?
My comes from Middle English my, derived from Middle English myn, which developed from Proto-Germanic minniz, ultimately tracing to the Proto-Indo-European root men-.
my (English): First-person singular possessive determiner. See...
Definitions
- First-person singular possessive determiner. See...
Ancestry of “my”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | my | Alternative form of mi |
| 2 | Middle English | mi | First-person singular genitive determiner: my |
| 3 | Middle English | min | First-person singular genitive determiner: my;... |
| 4 | Old English | mīn | my, mine |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *mīn | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | mīnaz | my, mine; 1st person singular possessive |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | méynos | my; mine |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | mei | to fix, to build fortifications or fences |