Etymograph

English

v

V comes from Middle English v (also written u), from Old English u and a respelling of f between vowels.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500v1
  2. Englishtodayv1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English v

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500vWiktionary, English v
  2. EnglishtodayvWiktionary, English v

The story

Before the 1700s, the pointed form v was written at the beginning of a word, while a rounded form u was used elsewhere, regardless of sound. So whereas valor and excuse appeared as in modern printing, have and upon were printed haue and vpon. Eventually, in the 1700s, to differentiate between the consonant and vowel sounds, the v form was used to represent the consonant, and u the vowel sound. v then preceded u in the alphabet, but the order has since reversed.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

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Today it means

character The twenty-second letter of the English alphabet, called vee and written in the Latin script.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “v”. 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 / Middle English v / v