Etymograph

English

tribe

Tribe comes from Latin tribus ‘one of the three original tribes of Rome:…’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *tréyes.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tréyes1‘three’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trejes1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trēs1‘three’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrēs2‘three’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtribus3‘one of the three original tribes of Rome: Ramnes, Tities, Luceres’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400tribu3
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tribe3‘one of the twelve tribes of Israel’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1808tribe3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin tres
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin tribus
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English tribe
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1808, G. L. Leclerc, Count de Buffon: “The cod may not improperly be placed at the…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tréyesWiktionary, Latin tres‘three’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trejesWiktionary, Latin tresreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trēsWiktionary, Latin tres‘three’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrēsWiktionary, Latin tribus‘three’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtribusWiktionary, English tribe‘one of the three original tribes of Rome: Ramnes, Tities, Luceres’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400tribuWiktionary, English tribe
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tribeWiktionary, English tribe‘one of the twelve tribes of Israel’
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1808tribeWiktionary, English tribe. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1808, G. L. Leclerc, Count de Buffon: “The cod may not improperly be placed at the…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *tréyes ‘three’

three, tri, tern, troika, 11 more

through Latin trēs ‘three’

trinity, trio, trey, tres, triplex, 9 more

through Latin tribus ‘one of the three original tribes of Rome:…’

distribution, contribution, contribute, tribute, tribal, tribunal, contributor, tribune, retribution, attribution, 4 more

Today it means

noun An ethnic group larger than a band or clan (and which may contain clans) but smaller than a nation (and which in turn may constitute a nation with other tribes). The tribe is often the basis of ethnic identity.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “tribe”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin tres, Latin tribus. 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 *tréyes / tribe

Shirt and support for this word