Where does “south” come from?

South comes from Middle English south, from Old English sūþ, from Proto-Germanic sunþrą and sunþraz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European sh₂únt(e)ros and sóh₂wl̥.

south (English): One of the four major compass points,...

Definitions

  1. One of the four major compass points,...

Ancestry of “south”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishsouthsouth, southernness; A location to the south; the...
2Old Englishsūþsouth
3Proto-Germanicsunþrąsouth; south, southward
4Proto-Indo-Europeansóh₂wl̥sun

Words derived from “south”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European sóh₂wl̥ →Every word from Proto-Germanic sunþrą →Every word from Old English sūþ →