Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “æfter-” come from?

æfter- (Old English) comes from Old English æfter, from Proto-West Germanic *aftar, from Proto-Germanic after, from Proto-Indo-European h₂epoteros — further behind, further away.

æfter- (Old English): after, behind; afterward; for, for the sake or...

Definitions

  1. after, behind; afterward; for, for the sake or...

Ancestry of “æfter-”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishæfterafter; according to
2Proto-West Germanic*aftar—
3Proto-Germanicafterafter, behind
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂epoterosfurther behind, further away

Words derived from “æfter-”

  • æfterfolgian
  • æftergengel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂epoteros →