English
willing
Willing comes from Old English willende, present participle of willan ‘to want’, from Proto-Germanic *wiljaną ‘to want’.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wiljaną‘to want’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*willjan‘to want’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150willanas willende‘to want’
- Englishearliest quotation 1897willing
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*wiljaną‘to want’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*willjan‘to want’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150willanas willende‘to want’
- Englishearliest quotation 1897willing
Earliest quotation: 1897, Winston Churchill: “In the eyes of Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke the…”
Equivalent to will + -ing
Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- ‘to choose, wish’
…
Proto-Germanic *wiljaną ‘to want’
Proto-West Germanic *willjan ‘to want’
Old English willan ‘to want’
Middle English willen ‘to want something’
English will
Linked words
through Proto-West Germanic *willjan ‘to want’
Today it means
adj Ready to do something, particularly something that requires change or effort; not objecting.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *wiljaną / willing