Etymology Map
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Gossip

3 stages from Old English to English.

Today it means casual talk about other people's private affairs

Where does the word "gossip" come from? It comes from Old English godsibb, passing through Middle English before entering English (1560s).

1
Stage 1 of 3
godsibb
Old English · medieval
"godparent"
god + sibb 'relative' (as in 'sibling'): a godparent, spiritually related through baptism
2
Stage 2 of 3
gossib
Middle English · 1300s
"close friend"
a close friend, especially the women friends invited to attend a birth
3
Stage 3 of 3
gossip
English · 1560s
"idle talk; rumour"
became a person who delights in idle talk by the 1560s, and by 1811 the talk itself
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Read the full story

Gossip’s story begins in Old English: godsibb meant “godparent.” God + sibb 'relative' (as in 'sibling'): a godparent, spiritually related through baptism. By 1300s, the word had taken hold in Middle English as gossib. A close friend, especially the women friends invited to attend a birth. It reached English by 1560s as gossip. Became a person who delights in idle talk by the 1560s, and by 1811 the talk itself. Today, gossip means casual talk about other people's private affairs.