Where does “yours” come from?
Yours derives from Middle English ȝoures, formed from Old English -es attached to a possessive stem ultimately from Proto-Germanic izweraz and Proto-Indo-European yū́, meaning "you."
yours (English): That which belongs to you ; the possessive...
Definitions
- That which belongs to you ; the possessive...
Ancestry of “yours”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | youres | Second-person plural genitive pronoun: yours;... |
| 2 | Middle English | your | Alternative form of youre |
| 3 | Old English | ēower | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | iuwar | your, yours, of you |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | izweraz | your; 2nd person plural possessive |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | jūz | you |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | yū́ | you |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | túh₂ | you, thou |