English
foretime
1530s, from fore- + time.
Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘before, formerly’
Proto-Germanic *fura- ‘before, in front of, for’
Proto-West Germanic *forē- ‘before, in front of, fore-, pre-’
English fore-
Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- ‘to divide’
…
Proto-Germanic *tīmô ‘division, period; time’
Proto-West Germanic *tīmō
Old English tīma ‘time, period’
Middle English tyme
English time
Today it means
noun A time previous to the present, or to a time alluded to or implied; former time or times.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / foretime