*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of grith

From Middle English grith, griþ, from Late Old English griþ, from Old Norse grið (“domicile, home”), in the plural with a meaning "truce, peace; sanctuary, asylum". The English word is attested from the early 11th centur

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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 ↗
noun

Guaranteed security, sanctuary, safe conduct. · Security, peace or protection guaranteed in particular instances in Old English law. · A place of protection, a sanctuary.

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

From Middle English grith, griþ, from Late Old English griþ, from Old Norse grið (“domicile, home”), in the plural with a meaning "truce, peace; sanctuary, asylum". The English word is attested from the early 11th century, and after the end of the Anglo-Saxon period assumed a meaning of peace in general, especially by association with frith. The word became obsolete by the 16th century, or during the 17th century in Scottish English, but was revived in the context of historical novels in the 19th century. The verb griþian (“to make peace”) appears in the Laws of Æthelred (Þæt hi Godes cirican æȝhwar ȝeorne griðian and friðian) and in Middle English is attested occasionally during the 13th century.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentiongrithenm
  • Inherited-form mentiongriþang
  • Derivation mentiongriðnon
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "grith"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English grith"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "griþ"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English griþ"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "grið",
        "4": "",
        "5": "domicile, home"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse grið (“domicile, home”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "grith",
      "grith#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "griþ",
      "griþ#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "griþ",
      "griþ#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "grið",
      "grið#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "peace",
      "peace"
    ],
    [
      "frith",
      "frith#English"
    ],
    [
      "griþian",
      "griþian#Old_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Guaranteed security, sanctuary, safe conduct.",
        "Security, peace or protection guaranteed in particular instances in Old English law.",
        "A place of protection, a sanctuary."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "obsolete",
        "uncountable",
        "historical"
      ],
      "recordId": "0bb98635da87f9e1e568285eee0fe2a924eee0c185f98df2b7cf8e3057d962bc",
      "rawRecordSha256": "06713161272a579858069ec57c90e8f7a44331a43136e1b1c55de58e90f4e409",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2211111
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "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 grith →

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-Z3JpdGg