English
headsman
Headsman comes from Middle English heddysman.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500heddysman
- Englishearliest quotation 1603headsman
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500heddysman
- Englishearliest quotation 1603headsman
Earliest quotation: 1603, Michel de Montaigne, The Essayes […]: “And of those base-minded jesters or buffons, some have…”
Formed from head + -s- + -man
Proto-Indo-European *kap- ‘head’
…
Proto-Germanic *haubudą ‘head’
Proto-West Germanic *haubud
Old English hēafod ‘head’
Middle English heed ‘head’
English head
Every English word from Middle English heddysman
Today it means
noun A chief person; a head man
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English heddysman / headsman