Where does “þu” come from?

þu (Middle English) comes from Middle English þou, from Old English þū, from Proto-West Germanic þū, from Proto-Germanic *þū, from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ — you, thou.

þu (Middle English): Alternative form of þou

Definitions

  1. Alternative form of þou

Ancestry of “þu”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishþouthou second-person singular pronoun; you
2Old Englishþūyou, thou (nominative singular)
3Proto-West Germanicþūyou
4Proto-Germanic*þū—
5Proto-Indo-Europeantúh₂you, thou
Every word from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ →Every word from Proto-Germanic *þū →Every word from Proto-West Germanic þū →