Etymograph

English

afar

Afar comes from Middle English fer ‘far, distant’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘to cross, pass’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-1‘to cross, pass’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-nóy1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ferrai2‘far’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*ferr2reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150feorr2‘far’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500fer3‘far, distant’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500afer4
  8. Englishtodayafar4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *ferrai
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Middle English fer
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Middle English afer
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English afar

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *ferrai‘to cross, pass’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-nóyWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *ferraireconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*ferraiWiktionary, Middle English fer‘far’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*ferrWiktionary, Middle English ferreconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150feorrWiktionary, Middle English fer‘far’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ferWiktionary, Middle English afer‘far, distant’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500aferWiktionary, English afar
  8. EnglishtodayafarWiktionary, English afar

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘to cross, pass’

first, before, support, per, report, further, price, private, press, practice, opportunity, pre, prior, prime, appreciate, port, primary, prize, pregnant, fear, ford, practical, forth, precious, praise, interpretation, privilege, ferry, pirate, parade, porch, primitive, prix, par, interpreter, pardon, pragmatic, privy, prism, proton, 155 more

through Proto-Germanic *ferrai ‘far’

far, 1 more

Today it means

adv At, to, or from a great distance; far away; distantly.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “afar”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *ferrai, Middle English fer, Middle English afer. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *per- / afar

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