*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of East

By proprialization from east.

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
name

Any of various particular regions named for the cardinal direction in which they lie. · The Eastern world; the regions, primarily situated in the Eastern Hemisphere, whose culture is derived from Arabia, India, Persia or China. · The Eastern Bloc; the eastern countries of Europe. · the Soviet Union and its socialist allies during the Cold War.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

By proprialization from east.

This page abbreviates 6 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":from",
        "3": "east"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*austraz\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" }, { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"is_duplicate\" : true, \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : [ \"gem-pro\", \":der\", \"*austrą\" ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*austrą\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*austrą\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*austr\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"ēast\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"est\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"east\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"East\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"East\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":from",
        "3": "east"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "proprialization",
      "proprialization"
    ],
    [
      "east",
      "east#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "Any of various particular regions named for the cardinal direction in which they lie.",
        "The Eastern world; the regions, primarily situated in the Eastern Hemisphere, whose culture is derived from Arabia, India, Persia or China.",
        "The Eastern Bloc; the eastern countries of Europe.",
        "the Soviet Union and its socialist allies during the Cold War."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable",
        "historical"
      ],
      "recordId": "5aa8ccdbfc286b425a9826f81ebcdb10ce176ab4ada491ac917b7831fe4eb576",
      "rawRecordSha256": "82a32906b0a7aed455c3af615c0aa1abf16d8419894c4ba7564a290a8e53648c",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 325460
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 6,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for East →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-RWFzdA