Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “rēfa” come from?

rēfa (Old English) comes from Old English ġerēfa, from Proto-West Germanic garāfijō — count; earl; reeve, bailiff.

Ancestry of “rēfa”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishġerēfareeve, official; steward, reeve
2Proto-West Germanicgarāfijōcount; earl; reeve, bailiff

Words derived from “rēfa”

  • reeve
  • hogreeve
  • landreeve
  • shire-reeve
  • reeve
  • reve
Every word from Proto-West Germanic garāfijō →