English
robe
Robe comes from Old French robe ‘booty’, from Proto-Germanic *raubō ‘rift, gap’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *Hrewp- ‘to tear, peel’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*Hrewp-‘to tear, peel’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*raubō‘rift, gap’reconstructed
- Frankishc. 250–700*roubareconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400robe‘booty’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘a robe as a symbol of rank or office’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*Hrewp-‘to tear, peel’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*raubō‘rift, gap’reconstructed
- Frankishc. 250–700*roubareconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400robe‘booty’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘a robe as a symbol of rank or office’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606same form
Earliest quotation: c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of King Lear: “Through tattered clothes small vices do appear; / Robes…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *Hrewp- ‘to tear, peel’
corruption, route, corrupt, disrupt, eruption, rover, rob, rupture, robbery, erupt, rout, reaver, 22 more
Today it means
noun A long loose outer garment, often signifying honorary stature.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *Hrewp- / robe