Where does “post-midnight” come from?
post-midnight (English) comes from English midnight, from Middle English midnight, from Old English midniht, from Proto-Germanic midjanahts, from Proto-Germanic midjaz, from Proto-Indo-European médʰyos, from Proto-Indo-European medʰi-, from Proto-Indo-European me — in the middle of, near, by, around, with.
Ancestry of “post-midnight”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | midnight | The middle of the night: the sixth temporal hour,... |
| 2 | Middle English | midnight | — |
| 3 | Old English | midniht | midnight |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | midjanahts | midnight |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | midjaz | middle, mid |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | médʰyos | middle |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | medʰi- | with, among; with, along |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | me | in the middle of, near, by, around, with |