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Where does the word "king" come from? It comes from Proto-Germanic kuningaz, passing through Old English before entering English (1500s).
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Where does the word "king" come from? It comes from Proto-Germanic kuningaz, passing through Old English before entering English (1500s).
King’s story begins in Proto-Germanic: kuningaz meant “ruler.” From 'kunją', kin: the leader of a family or people; Finnish borrowed it very early as 'kuningas'. By 700s-1000s, the word had taken hold in Old English as cyning. Alfred the Great styled himself king of the Anglo-Saxons in the 880s. It reached English by 1500s as king. Contracted from 'cyning' to 'king' by the 1100s. Today, king means the male ruler of a kingdom.
- Stage 1 · Proto-Germanic · ancient kuningaz "ruler", from 'kunją', kin: the leader of a family or people; Finnish borrowed it very early as 'kuningas'.
- Stage 2 · Old English · 700s-1000s cyning "king", Alfred the Great styled himself king of the Anglo-Saxons in the 880s.
- Stage 3 · English · 1500s king "ruler", contracted from 'cyning' to 'king' by the 1100s.