English
ferity
Ferity comes from Latin feritas ‘wildness’, from ferus ‘wild’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰweh₁r-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰweh₁r-reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEferus‘wild’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEferitas‘wildness’
- Englishearliest quotation 1658ferity
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰweh₁r-reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEferus‘wild’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEferitas‘wildness’
- Englishearliest quotation 1658ferity
Earliest quotation: 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, Urne-Burial: “To burn the bones of the King of Edom…”
Equivalent to ferus + -ity
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰweh₁r-
through Latin ferus ‘wild’
Today it means
noun The quality or fact of being wild or in a wild state.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰweh₁r- / ferity