Etymograph

English

obsequy

Obsequy comes from Old French obseque ‘funeral’, from Latin obsequiī ‘complaisant, yielding’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-1‘to follow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sékʷetor1‘to be following’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sekʷōr1‘to follow, come/go after’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsequor1‘to follow, to come or go after, to pursue’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequor1‘submit to, yield to’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequium2as obsequia, alteration‘compliance’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequiī2‘complaisant, yielding’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obseque2‘funeral’
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500obseque2
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1478obsequy2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin obsequium
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English obsequy
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1478, Geoffrey Chaucer: “And to the ladyes he reſtored agayn / The…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sekʷ-Wiktionary, Latin obsequium‘to follow’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sékʷetorWiktionary, Latin obsequium‘to be following’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sekʷōrWiktionary, Latin obsequium‘to follow, come/go after’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsequorWiktionary, Latin obsequium‘to follow, to come or go after, to pursue’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequorWiktionary, Latin obsequium‘submit to, yield to’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequiumWiktionary, English obsequyas obsequia, alteration‘compliance’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEobsequiīWiktionary, English obsequy‘complaisant, yielding’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400obsequeWiktionary, English obsequy‘funeral’
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500obsequeWiktionary, English obsequy
  10. Englishearliest quotation 1478obsequyWiktionary, English obsequy. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1478, Geoffrey Chaucer: “And to the ladyes he reſtored agayn / The…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- ‘to follow’

say, see, social, second, saw, society, executive, sight, associate, sue, suite, saga, subsequent, consequence, consequently, intrinsic, dissociation, sequential, extrinsic, sequestration, dissociate, seg, sequester, 29 more

through Proto-Italic *sekʷōr ‘to follow, come/go after’

pursuit, suitor, 15 more

through Latin sequor ‘to follow, to come or go after, to pursue’

suit, pursue, consecutive, execute, prosecution, sequence, persecution, sequel, sect, executor, ensue, persecute, consequent, segue, sequitur, 17 more

Today it means

noun The last office for the dead.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “obsequy”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin obsequium. 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 *sekʷ- / obsequy

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