Etymograph

English

light

Light comes from Middle English light, from Old English lēoht, from Proto-Germanic *leuhtą, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- ‘to shine’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-‘to shine’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewktomreconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*leuhtąreconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*leuht‘light’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150lēoht
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500light‘light, illumination’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1591light

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-‘to shine’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewktomreconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*leuhtąreconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*leuht‘light’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150lēoht
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500light‘light, illumination’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1590–1591light

Earliest quotation: c. 1590–1591, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona: “He shall never know / That I had any…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *lewk- ‘to shine’

low, los, link, lucy, ounce, lunar, luna, lea, illumination, lux, illuminate, lucid, luminous, translucent, lumen, lynx, luce, luminosity, lumia, lum, lune, loach, leucine, luminescent, luminary, luminal, 75 more

Another origin of light

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-‘to shine’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewktomreconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*leuhtąreconstructed
  4. Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*liuhtijaną‘to give light, shine’reconstructed
  5. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*liuhtijanreconstructed
  6. Old Englishc. 450–1150līehtan‘to light, to shine’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lighten
  8. Englishtodaylight

Another origin of light

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*leuhtazreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150lēoht‘luminous, bright, light, clear, resplendent, renowned, beautiful’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500light‘the radiation which allows for vision by brightening objects and colours’
  5. Englishtodaylight

Another origin of light

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁lengʷʰ-‘lightweight’uncertain
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*linhtaz‘light (in weight)’uncertain
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*lį̄ht‘light (in weight)’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150lēht
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500liȝt
  6. Englishtodaylight

Another origin of light

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁lengʷʰ-‘lightweight’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*linhtazreconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*linhtijaną‘to make light’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*lį̄htijan‘to lighten, make weigh less’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150līhtan‘to relieve’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lighten
  7. Englishtodaylight

Today it means

noun Electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength range visible to the human eye (about 400–750 nanometers): visible light.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *lewk- / light

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