Where does “you” come from?
you (Middle English) comes from Middle English yow, from Old English ēow, from Proto-West Germanic iwwiz, from Proto-Germanic izwiz, from Proto-Germanic *jūz, from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ — you, thou.
you (Middle English): Alternative form of yow; Alternative form of þou
Definitions
- Alternative form of yow; Alternative form of þou
Ancestry of “you”, step by step
you traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English yow
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | yow | Second-person plural object pronoun: you;... |
| 2 | Old English | ēow | Wo!, Alas!; sheep |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | iwwiz | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | izwiz | accusative/dative/instrumental of *jūz |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *jūz | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | túh₂ | you, thou |
via Old English þū
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old English | þū | you, thou (nominative singular) |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | þū | you |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | *þū | — |
via Old English īow
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old English | īow | you |