Etymograph

English

aidance

Aidance comes from Old French aidance, from aidier ‘help, aid’, and ultimately from Latin adiuvō.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadiuvō1‘help, assist’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadiūtō2as adiutāre‘help, assist’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400aidier3‘help, aid’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400aidance3
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1880aidance3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin adiuto
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old French aidier
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English aidance
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1880, Richard Francis Burton, Os Lusíadas: “Since sware the Parcæ unto me, their friend, /…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadiuvōWiktionary, Latin adiuto‘help, assist’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadiūtōWiktionary, Old French aidieras adiutāre‘help, assist’
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400aidierWiktionary, English aidance‘help, aid’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400aidanceWiktionary, English aidance
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1880aidanceWiktionary, English aidance. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1880, Richard Francis Burton, Os Lusíadas: “Since sware the Parcæ unto me, their friend, /…”

Formed from aid + -ance

Latin adiūtō ‘to assist’

Old French aidier

Old French eide

Middle English aide

English aid

Linked words

through Latin adiuvō ‘help, assist’

coadjutor, 8 more

through Latin adiūtō ‘help, assist’

jury, adjutant, 1 more

through Old French aidier ‘help, aid’

aid, aide, 1 more

Today it means

noun Aid; assistance; help.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “aidance”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin adiuto, Old French aidier. 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 / Latin adiuvō / aidance

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