Where does “tei” come from?

tei (Middle French) comes from Old French tei, from Latin tē, from Latin tū, from Proto-Italic tū, from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ — you, thou.

Ancestry of “tei”, step by step

tei traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old French tei

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old FrenchteiAlternative form of toi
2Latintē—
3Latintūyou (singular); thou
4Proto-Italictūyou
5Proto-Indo-Europeantúh₂you, thou

via Old French te

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchteyou; to you; yourself
Every word from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ →Every word from Proto-Italic tū →Every word from Latin tū →