Etymograph

English

dam

Dam comes from Middle English dam, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *dammaz.

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*dammazreconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*dammreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150*dammreconstructed
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dam
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1682dam

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*dammazreconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*dammreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150*dammreconstructed
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dam
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1682dam

Earliest quotation: 1682, Thomas Otway, Venice Preserv’d: “Home I vvould go, / But that my Dores…”.

Every English word from Proto-Germanic *dammaz

Another origin of dam

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dregʰ-reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδρᾰ́σσομαιdrắssomai‘to hold, to seize’
  3. Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEδραχμήdrakhmḗ‘drachma’
  4. Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEद्रम्मdrammá‘drachma (Greek coin)’
  5. Sauraseni Prakritmodern𑀤𑀫𑁆𑀫damma‘coin’
  6. Hindic. 1500–presentदामdām‘price, value, cost’
  7. Englishtodaydam

Today it means

noun A structure placed across a flowing body of water to stop the flow or part of the flow, generally for purposes such as retaining or diverting some of the water or retarding the release of accumulated water to avoid abrupt flooding.

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

Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *dammaz / dam

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