English
lith
Lith comes from Old English liþ ‘limb, member, joint, tip of finger, point’, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *liþuz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*liþuz‘limb’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*liþureconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150liþ‘limb, member, joint, tip of finger, point’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lith
- Englishearliest quotation 1485same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*liþuz‘limb’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*liþureconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150liþ‘limb, member, joint, tip of finger, point’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lith
- Englishearliest quotation 1485same form
Earliest quotation: 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, xiij: “he departed with the lady / & brouȝt her…”
Every English word from Proto-Germanic *liþuz
Another origin of lith
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁lewdʰ-‘man, people’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*liudiz‘men, people’reconstructed
- Old Norsec. 800–1350lýðr‘people, lede’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lith‘owndom’
- Englishtodaysame form
Another origin of lith
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱel-‘to conceal, hide’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hlidą‘door, lid, eyelid’reconstructed
- Old Norsec. 800–1350hlið‘a gap, gate, space’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500*lithreconstructed
- Englishtodaylith
Today it means
noun A limb; any member of the body.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *liþuz / lith