English
fowler
Fowler comes from Middle English foulere ‘a catcher or hunter of wildfowl’, from Proto-West Germanic *fugl ‘bird’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *fuglaz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fuglaz‘bird’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*fugl‘bird’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*fuglārīreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150fuglere
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foulere‘a catcher or hunter of wildfowl’
- Englishearliest quotation 1611fowler
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fuglaz‘bird’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*fugl‘bird’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*fuglārīreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150fuglere
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foulere‘a catcher or hunter of wildfowl’
- Englishearliest quotation 1611fowler
Earliest quotation: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Our soul is escaped as a bird out of…”
Formed from fowl + -er
Proto-Germanic *fuglaz ‘bird’
Proto-West Germanic *fugl ‘bird’
Old English fugol ‘bird’
Middle English foul ‘a bird’
English fowl
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *plewk- ‘to fly’
fly, flew, flock, flown, flee, floss, flay, 11 more
through Proto-West Germanic *fugl ‘bird’
Today it means
noun A hunter of wildfowl.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *fuglaz / fowler