English
Kimber
Kimber comes from Old English burg ‘fortress’, from Proto-Germanic *burgz ‘fortification, stronghold’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- ‘to be elevated, up high’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰerǵʰ-‘to be elevated, up high’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰérǵʰs‘something high up and fortified’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*burgz‘fortification, stronghold’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150burgas burh‘fortress’
- Englishearliest quotation 1990Kimber
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰerǵʰ-‘to be elevated, up high’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰérǵʰs‘something high up and fortified’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*burgz‘fortification, stronghold’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150burgas burh‘fortress’
- Englishearliest quotation 1990Kimber
Earliest quotation: 1990, Terry Brooks, The Scions of Shannara: “When Brin Ohmsford had come into Darklin Reach three…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- ‘to be elevated, up high’
force, comfortable, fort, berry, barrow, brie, forcible, brahmin, brahmana, bourguignon, burgher, bergh, 20 more
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰérǵʰs ‘something high up and fortified’
through Proto-Germanic *burgz ‘fortification, stronghold’
borough, burgess, bourgeois, burglar, burgh, burg, borgo, broch, 4 more
Today it means
name A surname originating as a matronymic.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- / Kimber