English
free state
From free + state, probably a calque of German Freistaat.
Proto-Indo-European *preyH- ‘to please; to love’
…
Proto-Germanic *frijaz ‘free’
Proto-West Germanic *frī ‘free’
Old English frēo ‘free, at liberty’
Middle English fre ‘having the status of a freeman’
English free
Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- ‘to stand’
…
Proto-Italic *status ‘setting up; position’
Latin status ‘state, condition, position’
Old French estat ‘state’
Middle English stat ‘condition’
English state
Today it means
noun A political entity whose political status is less than that of a fully sovereign nation-state, as with the former Congo Free State and the former Irish Free State.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / free state