Etymograph

English

rathe

Rathe comes from Old English hraþe ‘fast, quickly’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kret-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kret-1‘quick’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hraþ1‘quick’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hraþō1‘quickly’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150hraþe1‘fast, quickly’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500rathe1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1637rathe1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English rathe
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1637, Lycidas: “Bring the rathe primrose that forsaken dies.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kret-Wiktionary, English rathe‘quick’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hraþWiktionary, English rathe‘quick’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hraþōWiktionary, English rathe‘quickly’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150hraþeWiktionary, English rathe‘fast, quickly’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ratheWiktionary, English rathe
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1637ratheWiktionary, English rathe. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1637, Lycidas: “Bring the rathe primrose that forsaken dies.”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kret- ‘quick’

hard, bureaucracy, bureaucratic, aristocracy, bureaucrat, 45 more

Today it means

adj Ripening or blooming early.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “rathe”. 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 *kret- / rathe

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