English
carl
Carl comes from Old Norse karl ‘man, husband’, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *karilaz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*karilaz‘free man’reconstructed
- Proto-Norsec. 200–800 CE*karilaztransliteratedrunes *ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉreconstructed
- Old Norsec. 800–1350karl‘man, husband’
- Old Englishc. 450–1150carl‘a freeman, a man of middle rank or social class’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500carl‘a serf or peasant’
- Englishearliest quotation 1974carl
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*karilaz‘free man’reconstructed
- Proto-Norsec. 200–800 CE*karilaztransliteratedrunes *ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉreconstructed
- Old Norsec. 800–1350karl‘man, husband’
- Old Englishc. 450–1150carl‘a freeman, a man of middle rank or social class’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500carl‘a serf or peasant’
- Englishearliest quotation 1974carl
Earliest quotation: 1974, Guy Davenport: “In Lent noblemen and carls alike had got into…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵerh₂- ‘to become old, to grow’
corn, grain, granite, kernel, grange, garner, kern, garnet, geriatrics, granary, granule, 13 more
through Proto-Germanic *karilaz ‘free man’
through Old Norse karl ‘man, husband’
Today it means
noun A rude, rustic man; a churl.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *karilaz / carl