Where does “witness” come from?
Witness comes from Middle English witnesse, from Old English witnes, formed with the Old English suffix -nes from Proto-Germanic witją, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European weyd-.
witness (English): Attestation of a fact or event; testimony; One...
Definitions
- Attestation of a fact or event; testimony; One...
Ancestry of “witness”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | witnesse | — |
| 2 | Old English | witnes | witness |
| 3 | Old English | -nes | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | -nassī | Used to form abstract nouns, usually from... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -inassuz | -ness |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -ī | -ness, -th |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -į̄ | -th |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -íh₂ | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -h₂ | Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups... |