English word origin

Etymology of firth

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

An arm or inlet of the sea; a river estuary.

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

Borrowed from Scots firth, furth, from Northern Middle English fyrth, from either or both of Old English ford and Old Norse fjǫrðr (“firth, fjord”), from Proto-Germanic *ferþu, *ferþuz (“inlet, fjord”), from Proto-Indo-European *pértus (“crossing”), from *per- (“to carry forth”) + *-tus (suffix forming action nouns from verb roots). The English word is a doublet of fjord, ford, port, and fjard.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Root classification mention*per-ine-pro
Borrowed-form mentionfirthsco
Inherited-form mentionfordang
Derivation mentionfjǫrðrnon · firth, fjord
Derivation mention*ferþugem-pro
Derivation mention*pértusine-pro · crossing
Doublet mentionfjorden
Doublet mentionforden
Doublet mentionporten
Doublet mentionfjarden

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*per-",
        "id": "fare"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "sco",
        "3": "firth"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots firth"
    },
    {
      "name": "sup",
      "args": {
        "1": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "¹"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm-nor",
        "3": "fyrth"
      },
      "expansion": "Northern Middle English fyrth"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "ford"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English ford"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "fjǫrðr",
        "t": "firth, fjord"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse fjǫrðr (“firth, fjord”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "sup",
      "args": {
        "1": "2"
      },
      "expansion": "²"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*ferþu"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *ferþu"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*pértus",
        "t": "crossing"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *pértus (“crossing”)"
    },
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      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "suffix"
      },
      "expansion": "suffix"
    },
    {
      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "noun"
      },
      "expansion": "noun"
    },
    {
      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "verb"
      },
      "expansion": "verb"
    },
    {
      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "root"
      },
      "expansion": "root"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fjord",
        "3": "ford",
        "4": "port",
        "5": "fjard",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "doublet of fjord, ford, port, and fjard"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Firth of Forth",
      "Firth of Forth"
    ],
    [
      "Scotland",
      "Scotland"
    ],
    [
      "bridges",
      "bridge#Noun"
    ],
    [
      "firth",
      "firth#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "furth",
      "furth#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "fyrth",
      "fyrth#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "ford",
      "ford#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "fjǫrðr",
      "fjǫrðr#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "*ferþu",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ferþu"
    ],
    [
      "*ferþuz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ferþuz"
    ],
    [
      "*pértus",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/pértus"
    ],
    [
      "*per-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/per-"
    ],
    [
      "*-tus",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-tus"
    ],
    [
      "fjord",
      "fjord#English"
    ],
    [
      "ford",
      "ford#English"
    ],
    [
      "port",
      "port#English"
    ],
    [
      "fjard",
      "fjard#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
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      "glosses": [
        "An arm or inlet of the sea; a river estuary."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Alternative form of frith (“a forest used for hunting; a (small) wood; wooded country; land covered mainly by brushwood”).

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

From Middle English fyrth, a metathetic variant of frith (“forest”), from Old English fyrhþe, fyrhþ (“forest, wooded country; game preserve, hunting ground”), from Proto-West Germanic *furhiþi (“forest, woodland”), Proto-Germanic *furhiþją (“forest, wooded country”), *furhiþǭ, from *furhu (“fir; pine”), from *furahō, *furhō (“fir; pine; (fir or pine) forest”), from Proto-Indo-European *pérkus (“oak”), from *perkʷ- (“oak”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Root classification mention*perkʷ-ine-pro
Inherited-form mentionfyrthenm
Inherited-form mentionfyrhþeang
Inherited-form mention*furhiþigmw-pro · forest, woodland
Inherited-form mention*furhiþjągem-pro · forest, wooded country
Derivation mention*pérkusine-pro · oak

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*perkʷ-"
      },
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    },
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      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "fyrth"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English fyrth"
    },
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      "name": "sup",
      "args": {
        "1": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "¹"
    },
    {
      "name": "glossary",
      "args": {
        "1": "metathetic"
      },
      "expansion": "metathetic"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "fyrhþe"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English fyrhþe"
    },
    {
      "name": "sup",
      "args": {
        "1": "2"
      },
      "expansion": "²"
    },
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    },
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      "name": "inh",
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        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
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      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *furhiþją (“forest, wooded country”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*pérkus",
        "t": "oak"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *pérkus (“oak”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "fyrth",
      "fyrth#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "frith",
      "frith#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "fyrhþe",
      "fyrhþe#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "fyrhþ",
      "fyrhþ#Old_English"
    ],
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      "*furhiþi",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/furhiþi"
    ],
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      "*furhiþją",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/furhiþją"
    ],
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      "*furhiþǭ",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/furhiþǭ"
    ],
    [
      "*furhu",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/furhu"
    ],
    [
      "*furahō",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/furahō"
    ],
    [
      "*furhō",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/furhō"
    ],
    [
      "*pérkus",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/pérkus"
    ],
    [
      "*perkʷ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/perkʷ-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
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        "Alternative form of frith (“a forest used for hunting; a (small) wood; wooded country; land covered mainly by brushwood”)."
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Where this record stops

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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-ZmlydGg