Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “knyghte” come from?

knyghte (Middle English) comes from Old English cniht, from Proto-West Germanic kneht — youth, boy; servant, knight.

Ancestry of “knyghte”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishcnihtboy; servant, attendant; male of high military...
2Proto-West Germanicknehtyouth, boy; servant, knight

Words derived from “knyghte”

  • Knight
  • Knightian
Every word from Proto-West Germanic kneht →