Etymograph

English

obeisance

Obeisance comes from Old French obeïssant ‘obedient’, and goes back to obeïr ‘to obey’.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïr1‘to obey’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïssant1‘obedient’participle of obeïr
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïssance1
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500obeisaunce1‘obedience, obeisance’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1845obeisance1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English obeisance
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1845, — Quarles pseudonym; Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven: “In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly…”.

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïrWiktionary, English obeisance‘to obey’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïssantWiktionary, English obeisance‘obedient’participle of obeïr
  3. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obeïssanceWiktionary, English obeisance
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500obeisaunceWiktionary, English obeisance‘obedience, obeisance’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1845obeisanceWiktionary, English obeisance. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1845, — Quarles pseudonym; Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven: “In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly…”

A compound of oboediō ‘to obey, yield obedience to’ + audiō ‘to hear’

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- ‘to see, perceive’

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewis ‘clearly, manifestly’

Proto-Italic *awizdiō ‘to hear’

Latin audiō ‘to hear’

Linked words

through Old French obeïr ‘to obey’

obey, 1 more

Today it means

noun Demonstration of an obedient attitude, especially by bowing deeply; a deep bow which demonstrates such an attitude.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “obeisance”. 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 / Old French obeïr / obeisance

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