guest

Where does the word "guest" come from? It comes from Old Norse gestr, passing through Middle English before entering English (1500s).

Guest’s story begins in Old Norse: gestr meant “guest, stranger.” Hospitality to travellers was a strict social duty in Norse society, spelled out in the poem Hávamál. By 1200s, the word had taken hold in Middle English as gest. Replaced the native Old English cognate 'giest', whose soft g-sound would have made it 'yest'. It reached English by 1500s as guest. The silent u was added to spelling to show the g stays hard before e. Today, guest means a person invited to visit, stay, or take part.

1. Stage 1 · Old Norse · medieval gestr "guest, stranger", hospitality to travellers was a strict social duty in Norse society, spelled out in the poem Hávamál.
2. Stage 2 · Middle English · 1200s gest "a visitor", replaced the native Old English cognate 'giest', whose soft g-sound would have made it 'yest'.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1500s guest "a person invited to visit or stay", the silent u was added to spelling to show the g stays hard before e.