Etymograph

English

turf

Turf comes from Middle English turf ‘soil, earth’, from Proto-West Germanic *turb ‘turf, peat’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *derbʰ- ‘tuft, grass’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*derbʰ-‘tuft, grass’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*turbz‘turf, lawn’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*turb‘turf, peat’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150turf‘turf, sod, soil, piece of grass-covered earth, greensward’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘soil, earth’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1897same form

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*derbʰ-‘tuft, grass’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*turbz‘turf, lawn’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*turb‘turf, peat’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150turf‘turf, sod, soil, piece of grass-covered earth, greensward’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘soil, earth’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1897same form

Earliest quotation: 1897, Winston Churchill: “Miss Thorn began digging up the turf with her…”

Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *derbʰ-

Today it means

noun A layer of earth covered with grass; sod.

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

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *derbʰ- / turf

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