Where does “woman” come from?
Woman derives from Middle English woman, from Middle English wifman, from Old English wiman.
woman (English): An adult female human; All female humans...
Definitions
- An adult female human; All female humans...
Ancestry of “woman”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | womman | An female adult person; a woman; The female sex... |
| 2 | Old English | wīfmann | woman; female servant; woman |
| 3 | Old English | mann | person; man meaning mankind; man meaning adult... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | mann | person, human |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *mann- | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | men- | to think, mind; spiritual activity; to stay,... |