English
harbor
Harbor comes from Middle English herberwe ‘a place of residence’, from Old English herebeorg ‘shelter, lodgings, quarters’, and ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *harjabergu.
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*harjabergu‘army shelter, refuge’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150herebeorg‘shelter, lodgings, quarters’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500herberwe‘a place of residence’
- Englishearliest quotation 1582harbor
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*harjabergu‘army shelter, refuge’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150herebeorg‘shelter, lodgings, quarters’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500herberwe‘a place of residence’
- Englishearliest quotation 1582harbor
Earliest quotation: 1582, Nicolas [i.e., Nicolo] Zeno; Antonio Zeno: “[T]here aboutes dwelt greate multitudes of people half wilde,…”
The story
The final syllable was subsequently altered by analogy with the Anglo‐Norman and Old French suffix -or (as seen in loanwords like honour and labour).
Linked words
through Proto-West Germanic *harjabergu ‘army shelter, refuge’
Another origin of harbor
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*harjabergu‘barracks, shelter’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanic, derivedc. 200–500 CE*harjabergōn‘to lodge, camp’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150herebeorgian‘to take up one's quarters, lodge’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500herberwen‘to provide shelter or refuge’
- Englishtodayharbor
Today it means
noun Any place of shelter.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-West Germanic *harjabergu / harbor