English
shoe
Shoe comes from Middle English scho ‘a shoe’, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *skōhaz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skōhazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skōhreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sċōh
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scho‘a shoe’
- Englishearliest quotation 1806shoe
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skōhazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skōhreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sċōh
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scho‘a shoe’
- Englishearliest quotation 1806shoe
Earliest quotation: 1806, Lawrence Dundas Campbell, E. Samuel: “The finest gold among them is 100 touch, called…”
The story
Eclipsed non-native Middle English sabatine, sabatoun (‘shoe’) from Medieval Latin sabatēnum, sabatum (‘shoe, slipper’) (compare Old Occitan sabatō, Spanish zapato (‘shoe’), French sabot (‘wooden shoe, clog’), Italian ciabatta). The archaic plural shoon is from Middle English shon, from Old English scōn, scōum (“shoes”, dative plural) and scōna (“shoes'”, genitive plural); it is cognate with Scots shuin (‘shoes’).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *skek- ‘to move quickly, jump’
through Proto-Germanic *skehaną ‘to move quickly’
through Middle English scho ‘a shoe’
Today it means
noun A protective covering for the foot, with a bottom part composed of thick leather or plastic sole and often a thicker heel, and a softer upper part made of leather or synthetic material. Shoes generally do not extend above the ankle, as opposed to boots, which do.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *skōhaz / shoe