Where does “tribal” come from?
Tribal comes from English tribe, from Latin tribus, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European tréyes meaning three, possibly referring to a group's threefold division.
tribal (English): Of or relating to tribes; Based on or organized...
Definitions
- Of or relating to tribes; Based on or organized...
Ancestry of “tribal”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | -ity | Used to form a noun from an adjective;... |
| 2 | Middle English | -ite | — |
| 3 | Old French | -ité | -ity |
| 4 | Latin | -itās | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ts | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -teh₂ | Used to form nouns representing state of being |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -tós | Creates verbal adjectives from verb stems |