English
regality
Regality comes from Late Latin rēgālitās ‘royal dignity, royalty, regality’, from Latin rēx ‘king’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃reǵ-1‘to straighten’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃rḗǵs1‘king, ruler’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*rēks1‘king’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErēx2‘king’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErēgālis3‘regal, royal’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CErēgālitās3‘royal dignity, royalty, regality’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500regalite3
- Englishearliest quotation 1993regality3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin rex
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin regalis
- 3 Wiktionary, English regality
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1993, Miklós Boskovits, The Origins of Florentine Painting: “Whereas the accentuated linearism, the angular stylization of the…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃reǵ-Wiktionary, Latin rex‘to straighten’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₃rḗǵsWiktionary, Latin rex‘king, ruler’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*rēksWiktionary, Latin rex‘king’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErēxWiktionary, Latin regalis‘king’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErēgālisWiktionary, English regality‘regal, royal’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CErēgālitāsWiktionary, English regality‘royal dignity, royalty, regality’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500regaliteWiktionary, English regality
- Englishearliest quotation 1993regalityWiktionary, English regality. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1993, Miklós Boskovits, The Origins of Florentine Painting: “Whereas the accentuated linearism, the angular stylization of the…”
Formed from regal + -ity
Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten’
…
Latin rex ‘king’
Latin rēgālis ‘royal, kingly’
Old French regal ‘regal, royal’
Middle English regal
English regal
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten’
right, source, director, rule, direction, address, direct, correct, region, regular, dress, rank, arrangement, radar, arrange, rack, regime, ana, rogue, realm, resurrection, riches, raj, regulate, interrogation, royalty, rake, erect, richness, rector, regent, insurrection, anorexia, rectify, regency, rectum, rhesus, incorrigible, rectification, dirge, 96 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₃rḗǵs ‘king, ruler’
rich, rani, rajah, eldritch, 8 more
through Latin rēx ‘king’
through Latin rēgālis ‘regal, royal’
Today it means
noun Royalty; sovereignty; sovereign jurisdiction.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “regality”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin rex, Latin regalis. 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 *h₃reǵ- / regality