child

Where does the word "child" come from? It comes from Proto-Germanic kilþą, passing through Old English before entering English (1500s).

Child’s story begins in Proto-Germanic: kilþą meant “offspring.” Perhaps from a root meaning womb, as in Gothic 'kilþei'. By 700s-1000s, the word had taken hold in Old English as cild. Its plural 'cildru' gained an extra '-en', making 'children' a double plural. It reached English by 1500s as child. The old sense 'young noble' survives in the spelling of Byron's 'Childe Harold'. Today, child means a young human being.

1. Stage 1 · Proto-Germanic · ancient kilþą "offspring", perhaps from a root meaning womb, as in Gothic 'kilþei'.
2. Stage 2 · Old English · 700s-1000s cild "child", its plural 'cildru' gained an extra '-en', making 'children' a double plural.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1500s child "young person", the old sense 'young noble' survives in the spelling of Byron's 'Childe Harold'.