English
farmer
Farmer comes from Middle English fermour ‘a steward, bailliff, collector of taxes’, from Medieval Latin firma ‘rent’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *ferhwō ‘life force, body, being’.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ferhwō‘life force, body, being’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fermō‘means of living, subsistence’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*fermureconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150feorm‘rent, provision, supplies, feast’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500firma‘rent’
- Medieval Latin, derivedc. 600–1500firmarius‘one to whom land is rented, a collector of taxes, deputy’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400fermier‘a farmer, a lessee, husbandman, bailliff’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500fermour‘a steward, bailliff, collector of taxes’
- Englishearliest quotation 2012farmer
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ferhwō‘life force, body, being’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fermō‘means of living, subsistence’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*fermureconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150feorm‘rent, provision, supplies, feast’
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500firma‘rent’
- Medieval Latin, derivedc. 600–1500firmarius‘one to whom land is rented, a collector of taxes, deputy’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400fermier‘a farmer, a lessee, husbandman, bailliff’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500fermour‘a steward, bailliff, collector of taxes’
- Englishearliest quotation 2012farmer
Earliest quotation: 2012, An internet of airborne things: “A farmer could place an order for a new…”
Formed from farm + -er
Medieval Latin ferma
Anglo-Norman ferme ‘rent, lease, farm’
Middle English ferme ‘rent, revenue’
English farm
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *perkʷ- ‘life, force, strength, tree’
ever, forest, fir, firth, frith, 1 more
through Old English feorm ‘rent, provision, supplies, feast’
Today it means
noun Someone or something that farms, as: A person who works the land and/or who keeps livestock; anyone engaged in agriculture on a farm.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *ferhwō / farmer