Etymograph

English

cheque

Cheque comes from Middle English chek ‘Said when the opponent's king is under attack’, from Old French eschec ‘check’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-Iranian *kšáyati ‘he rules, he has power over’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*kšáyati1‘he rules, he has power over’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*xšáyati1reconstructed
  3. Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEOld Persian form2transliteratedoriginal script Old Persian form, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘king’
  4. Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭠2šāh‘king’
  5. Classical Persianc. 900–presentشاه2šāh‘shah, king’
  6. Arabicc. 500–presentشَاه2‘king 􂀿in chess􂁀’
  7. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500scaccus2‘check’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400eschec3‘check’
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500chek3‘Said when the opponent's king is under attack’
  10. English1500–presentcheck3
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1722cheque3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old Persian 𐏋
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old French eschec
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English cheque
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1722, Alexander Nisbet, A System of Heraldry Speculative and Practical: “George PARK of FULFORDLIES, descended of the Family of…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*kšáyatiWiktionary, Old Persian 𐏋‘he rules, he has power over’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*xšáyatiWiktionary, Old Persian 𐏋reconstructed
  3. Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEOld Persian formWiktionary, Old French eschectransliteratedoriginal script Old Persian form, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘king’
  4. Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭠Wiktionary, Old French eschecšāh‘king’
  5. Classical Persianc. 900–presentشاهWiktionary, Old French eschecšāh‘shah, king’
  6. Arabicc. 500–presentشَاهWiktionary, Old French eschec‘king 􂀿in chess􂁀’
  7. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500scaccusWiktionary, Old French eschec‘check’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400eschecWiktionary, English cheque‘check’
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500chekWiktionary, English cheque‘Said when the opponent's king is under attack’
  10. English1500–presentcheckWiktionary, English cheque
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1722chequeWiktionary, English cheque. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1722, Alexander Nisbet, A System of Heraldry Speculative and Practical: “George PARK of FULFORDLIES, descended of the Family of…”

first attested First attested in the 1790s (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

The story

From check, possibly influenced by exchequer. First attested in the 1790s.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Classical Persian شاه ‘shah, king’

shah

through Medieval Latin scaccus ‘check’

chess, checker, exchequer

through Middle English chek ‘Said when the opponent's king is under attack’

check

Today it means

noun A written order directing a bank to pay money to a person or entity.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “cheque”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Old Persian 𐏋, Old French eschec. 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-Iranian *kšáyati / cheque

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