English
deity
Deity comes from Middle French deité ‘deity, god’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *dyew- ‘sky, heaven’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dyew-‘sky, heaven’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*deywós‘god’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deiwos‘god, deity’reconstructed
- Old Latinc. 700–75 BCEdeivos
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdeus‘god’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdeitās‘divinity, deity, the nature of a god’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600deité‘deity, god’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590deity
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dyew-‘sky, heaven’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*deywós‘god’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*deiwos‘god, deity’reconstructed
- Old Latinc. 700–75 BCEdeivos
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdeus‘god’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEdeitās‘divinity, deity, the nature of a god’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600deité‘deity, god’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590deity
Earliest quotation: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book III, Canto X: “Thou seest all, yet none at all sees thee:…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dyew- ‘sky, heaven’
die, journal, journey, diary, dial, meridian, dev, sojourn, jovial, diurnal, deism, 29 more
through Proto-Indo-European *deywós ‘god’
through Proto-Italic *deiwos ‘god, deity’
diva, divinity, divination, diviner, 11 more
through Old Latin deivos
through Latin deus ‘god’
joss, deuce, deification, deist, 9 more
Today it means
noun Synonym of divinity: the state, position, or fact of being a god.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dyew- / deity