Etymograph

English

Tait

Tait comes from Old Norse teitr ‘cheerful, glad’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *doydo-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*doydo-reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*taitaz‘glad, delicate, tender, radiant’reconstructed
  3. Old Norsec. 800–1350teitr‘cheerful, glad’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tayt
  5. Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500Tayte
  6. EnglishtodayTait

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*doydo-reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*taitaz‘glad, delicate, tender, radiant’reconstructed
  3. Old Norsec. 800–1350teitr‘cheerful, glad’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tayt
  5. Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500Tayte
  6. EnglishtodayTait

Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *doydo-

Today it means

name A Scottish surname transferred from the nickname, originally a nickname for a cheerful or lively person.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *doydo- / Tait

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