English
kingless
Kingless comes from Middle English kingles ‘without a king’, from Proto-Germanic *kunją ‘clan’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to beget, give birth’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to beget, give birth’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₁-yó-m‘begotten, birthed’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kunją‘clan’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kuningaz‘king’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*kuning‘king’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cyning‘king’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500king‘king (monarch)’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500kingles‘without a king’
- Englishearliest quotation 1999kingless
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵenh₁-‘to beget, give birth’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₁-yó-m‘begotten, birthed’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kunją‘clan’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kuningaz‘king’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*kuning‘king’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150cyning‘king’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500king‘king (monarch)’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500kingles‘without a king’
- Englishearliest quotation 1999kingless
Earliest quotation: 1999, Simon Schama, Rembrandt's Eyes: “Now that Charles I had been beheaded, Cromwell wanted…”
Equivalent to king + -less
Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to produce’
…
Proto-Germanic *kuningaz
Proto-West Germanic *kuning
Old English cening
Middle English king ‘king’
English king
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- ‘to beget, give birth’
general, nature, kind, german, nation, generation, native, gender, pregnant, engine, gene, genius, oxygen, ken, genuine, genre, indigenous, hydrogen, gentle, genocide, naive, genus, noel, genital, natal, innate, nee, germ, nativity, nada, nascent, naïve, ingenious, janata, gens, gentile, puny, genial, genteel, cognate, 113 more
through Proto-Germanic *kunją ‘clan’
through Proto-Germanic *kuningaz ‘king’
Today it means
adj Without a king.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- / kingless