English
gang
Gang comes from Old English gang ‘journey, way’, from Proto-Germanic *gangaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- ‘to step’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰengʰ-‘to step, walk’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰongʰ-o-sreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gangaz‘going, way’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gang‘way, going’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gang‘journey; way, passage’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘journey; company’
- Englishearliest quotation 1772same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰengʰ-‘to step, walk’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰongʰ-o-sreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gangaz‘going, way’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gang‘way, going’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gang‘journey; way, passage’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘journey; company’
- Englishearliest quotation 1772same form
Earliest quotation: 1772, Richard Cumberland, The Fashionable Lover. A Comedy.: “(Colin alone) Ah, Colin, thou’rt a prodigal; a thriftless…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- ‘to step, walk’
jay, camino, doppelganger, ging, 11 more
through Old English gangan ‘to go, walk, turn out’
through Middle English gangen
Another origin of gang
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰengʰ-‘to step’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰóngʰosreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gangaz‘pace, step, gait’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gang‘pace, step, gait’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gang‘a journey’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishtodaysame form
Today it means
verb To go; walk; proceed.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- / gang