Etymograph

English

oak

Oak comes from Middle English ake, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *aiks.

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aiksreconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aikreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150aac
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ake
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1833oak

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aiksreconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aikreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150aac
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ake
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1833oak

Earliest quotation: 1833, Thomas Jefferson Hogg: “[E]very set of rooms has two doors, and I…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eyǵ-

aegis, 2 more

through Proto-West Germanic *aik

oke, 1 more

Today it means

noun A deciduous tree with distinctive deeply lobed leaves, acorns, and notably strong wood, typically of England and northeastern North America, included in genus Quercus.

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

Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *aiks / oak

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