Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “unwriten” come from?

unwriten (Old English) comes from Old English un-, from Proto-Germanic and-, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énti, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts, from Proto-Indo-European h₂ent-, from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- — on, onto.

Ancestry of “unwriten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishun-negation or absence of: un-, non-; bad; forms...
2Proto-Germanicand-—
3Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntiopposite; near; in front
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntsforehead; front
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ent-face; forehead; front
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “unwriten”

  • unwritten
  • unwrittenness
  • unwriten
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →