English
Wyrd
Wyrd comes from Old English Wyrd ‘Fate’, from Proto-Indo-European *wert- ‘to turn, wind’, and ultimately from *wer-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-‘to turn, bend’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-‘to turn, wind’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wurdiz‘fate’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150Wyrd‘Fate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1925same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-‘to turn, bend’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-‘to turn, wind’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wurdiz‘fate’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150Wyrd‘Fate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1925same form
Earliest quotation: 1925, Caroline Harris Stevens, The Treatment of Death in Anglo-Saxon Poetry: “Both Wyrd (2574, 2526) and the Mighty Maker (979)…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to turn, bend’
wear, guard, con, garage, regard, reward, warn, ward, worm, beware, garrison, verge, optic, ware, weir, panorama, reverence, revere, vermin, wry, vermilion, prosaic, guaranty, diorama, milliner, varmint, vermicelli, vermeil, vermiculite, 67 more
through Proto-Indo-European *wert- ‘to turn, wind’
university, worth, version, word, conversation, universe, ridiculous, divorce, diversity, versus, diverse, verse, vertical, advertisement, versatile, convertible, vortex, advert, divert, adversity, revert, ridicule, pervert, diversification, vertex, vertigo, avert, vert, derision, verso, deride, derisive, perversity, wurst, 73 more
through Old English Wyrd ‘Fate’
Today it means
name An Old English deity, goddess of fate.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wer- / Wyrd