English
cradle
Cradle comes from Middle English cradel ‘a cradle’, from Proto-Germanic *kradô ‘(wicker) basket’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gretH- ‘to tie’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gretH-‘to tie’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kradô‘(wicker) basket’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kradulazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*kradulreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cradol
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500cradel‘a cradle’
- Englishearliest quotation 1591cradle
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gretH-‘to tie’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kradô‘(wicker) basket’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kradulazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*kradulreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cradol
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500cradel‘a cradle’
- Englishearliest quotation 1591cradle
Earliest quotation: 1591, William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]: “No sooner was I crept out of my cradle…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gretH- ‘to tie’
through Proto-Germanic *kradô ‘(wicker) basket’
Today it means
noun A bed or cot for a baby, oscillating on rockers or swinging on pivots.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gretH- / cradle