English
felicity
Felicity comes from Old French felicité, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)- ‘to suckle, nurse’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁(y)-‘to suckle, nurse’root as named · steps between not traced
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400felicité
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500felicite‘bliss, happiness, joy’
- Englishearliest quotation 1513felicity
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰeh₁(y)-‘to suckle, nurse’root as named · steps between not traced
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400felicité
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500felicite‘bliss, happiness, joy’
- Englishearliest quotation 1513felicity
Earliest quotation: 1513, Henry Bradshaw: “Whan this ſayd monument diſcouered was / Suche a…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)- ‘to suckle, nurse’
female, feminist, doe, feminism, fetus, dai, tyre, fawn, femme, femininity, effeminate, filial, fellatio, dahi, fecundity, 30 more
Today it means
noun The condition of being happy.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)- / felicity