Where does “serf” come from?

serf (Middle Dutch) comes from Old French serf, from Latin servus, from Proto-Italic serwos, from Proto-Indo-European ser-wo-s, from Proto-Indo-European ser- — to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together.

Ancestry of “serf”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchserfserf; first-person singular present indicative of...
2Latinservusa servant; a serf; a slave
3Proto-Italicserwosguardian
4Proto-Indo-Europeanser-wo-sguardian
5Proto-Indo-Europeanser-to flow; to guard; to bind, to tie together

Words derived from “serf”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ser- →