prophetessprophetess

Prophetess comes from Latin prophēta ‘prophet, soothsayer’, from Ancient Greek φημί ‘to speak’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂-.

1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰeh₂-¹‘to speak’reconstructed
2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEφημί¹phēmí‘to speak’
3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπροφήτης¹prophḗtēs‘one who speaks for and interprets the will of a god: prophet, seer’
4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprophēta¹‘prophet, soothsayer’
5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprophētissa¹
6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400prophetesse¹
7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500prophetesse¹‘a female prophet’
8. Englishearliest quotation 2009prophetess¹

1. ¹ Wiktionary, English prophetess
2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity: “What made matters worse was that Montanus was accompanied…”.