English
ghostdom
Ghostdom comes from Old English gāstdōm ‘spirituality’.
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gāstdōm‘spirituality’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*gostdomreconstructed
- Englishearliest quotation 1853ghostdom
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gāstdōm‘spirituality’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*gostdomreconstructed
- Englishearliest quotation 1853ghostdom
Earliest quotation: 1853, S. B. Brittan, B. W. Richmond: “I have seized the key that unlocks the mystic…”
Formed from ghost + -dom
Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰéysd-
…
Proto-Germanic *gaistaz ‘terror’
Proto-West Germanic *gaist ‘ghost’
Old English gāst ‘breath’
Middle English gost ‘a spiritual being’
English ghost
Every English word from Old English gāstdōm
Today it means
noun The condition, state, or realm of ghosts or spirits; spirituality; spiritualism.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Old English gāstdōm / ghostdom