Etymograph

English

kith

Kith comes from Middle English kitthe ‘kinsmen, relations’, from Proto-Germanic *kunþiþō ‘knowledge, acquaintance’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to know’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-1‘to know’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kunþiþō1‘knowledge, acquaintance’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150cȳþþ1‘kinship, kinsfolk, relations’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500kitthe1‘kinsmen, relations’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1843kith1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English kith
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1843, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, The Last of the Barons: “Alack, would that Edward listened more to me and…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-Wiktionary, English kith‘to know’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*kunþiþōWiktionary, English kith‘knowledge, acquaintance’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150cȳþþWiktionary, English kith‘kinship, kinsfolk, relations’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500kittheWiktionary, English kith‘kinsmen, relations’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1843kithWiktionary, English kith. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1843, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, The Last of the Barons: “Alack, would that Edward listened more to me and…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to know’

can, know, could, note, normal, notice, recognize, ignore, narrative, glory, recognition, con, noble, ken, notion, keen, ignorant, norm, cognitive, diagnostic, notorious, notation, cunning, prognosis, narration, quaint, nobility, gnome, notoriety, cognition, notary, agnostic, canny, connoisseur, incognito, canna, gnosis, annotate, recognizance, uncouth, 91 more

Today it means

noun Friends and acquaintances.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “kith”. 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 *ǵneh₃- / kith

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