Etymograph

English

cousin

Cousin comes from Middle English cosin, from Old French cosin, from Latin cōnsobrīnus ‘first cousin’, from sobrīnus, ultimately from PIE *swésōr ‘sister’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swésōr1‘sister’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*swezrīnos2‘of a sister’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsobrīnus3‘maternal cousin’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnsobrīnus4‘maternal cousin; first cousin’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400cosin4‘kinsman’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500cosin5‘kinsman; cousin’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1526cousin5

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Italic *swezōr
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin sobrinus
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Latin consobrinus
  4. 4 Wiktionary, Middle English cosyn
  5. 5 Wiktionary, English cousin
  6. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1526, [William Tyndale, The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible): “Salute Andronicus⸝ and Junia my coſyns⸝ which were preſoners…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*swésōrWiktionary, Proto-Italic *swezōr‘sister’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*swezrīnosWiktionary, Latin sobrinus‘of a sister’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsobrīnusWiktionary, Latin consobrinus‘maternal cousin’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōnsobrīnusWiktionary, Middle English cosyn‘maternal cousin; first cousin’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400cosinWiktionary, Middle English cosyn‘kinsman’
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500cosinWiktionary, English cousin‘kinsman; cousin’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1526cousinWiktionary, English cousin. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1526, [William Tyndale, The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible): “Salute Andronicus⸝ and Junia my coſyns⸝ which were preſoners…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *swésōr ‘sister’

sister, 9 more

through Proto-Italic *swezōr ‘sister’

sorority, 7 more

Today it means

noun Chiefly with a qualifying word: Any relation (especially a distant one) who is not a direct ancestor or descendant but part of a person's extended family; a kinsman or kinswoman.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “cousin”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Italic *swezōr, Latin sobrinus, Latin consobrinus, Middle English cosyn. 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 *swésōr / cousin

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