English
first footing
First footing comes from Scots tae first-fit ‘to be the first to visit at the new year’.
- Scotsc. 1450–presenttae first-fit‘to be the first to visit at the new year’literally ‘to first-foot’
- Englishtodayfirst footing
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Scotsc. 1450–presenttae first-fit‘to be the first to visit at the new year’literally ‘to first-foot’
- Englishtodayfirst footing
Every English word from Scots tae first-fit
Today it means
noun The practice, during Hogmanay, of visiting friends and family, especially to be the first person to cross a home's threshold after midnight on New Year's Eve bearing a small gift.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Scots tae first-fit / first footing