English
Lychpit
Lychpit comes from Old English lic ‘corpse’, from Proto-West Germanic *līk ‘body’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leyg- ‘to jump around, run around’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leyg-‘to jump around, run around’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*līką‘body’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*līk‘body’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lic‘corpse’
- EnglishtodayLychpit
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*leyg-‘to jump around, run around’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*līką‘body’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*līk‘body’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150lic‘corpse’
- EnglishtodayLychpit
Formed from lych + pit
Latin puteus ‘trench, pit, well’
Proto-West Germanic *puti ‘well (water)’
Old English pytt ‘well, pool’
Middle English pit
English pit
The story
From lych + pit, lych being from Old English lic (‘corpse’), so it probably refers to a burial pit.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *leyg- ‘to jump around, run around’
through Proto-Germanic *līką ‘body’
through Proto-West Germanic *līk ‘body’
Today it means
name A modern suburb in Old Basing and Lychpit parish, Basingstoke and Deane district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU6653).
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *leyg- / Lychpit