*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of son

From Middle English sonn, sone, sun, sune, from Old English sunu (“son”), from Proto-West Germanic *sunu, from Proto-Germanic *sunuz (“son”), from Proto-Indo-European *suHnús (“son”), from Proto-Indo-European *sewH- (“to

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 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

One's male offspring. · A male adopted person in relation to his adoptive parents. · A male person who has such a close relationship with an older or otherwise more authoritative person that he can be regarded as a son of the other person. · A male person considered to have been significantly shaped by social conflict.

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

From Middle English sonn, sone, sun, sune, from Old English sunu (“son”), from Proto-West Germanic *sunu, from Proto-Germanic *sunuz (“son”), from Proto-Indo-European *suHnús (“son”), from Proto-Indo-European *sewH- (“to bear; give birth”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionsonnenm
  • Inherited-form mentionsunuang
  • Inherited-form mention*sunugmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*sunuzgem-pro · son
  • Inherited-form mention*suHnúsine-pro · son
  • Derivation mention*sewH-ine-pro · to bear; give birth

This page abbreviates 4 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": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:sone<id:son>",
        "id": "male offspring"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*sunuz\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*sunu\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"sunu\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"sone\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"son\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"male offspring\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"son\" id=\"English:_male_offspring\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "sonn"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English sonn"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "sunu",
        "4": "",
        "5": "son"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English sunu (“son”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*sunu"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *sunu"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*sunuz",
        "t": "son"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *sunuz (“son”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*suHnús",
        "t": "son"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *suHnús (“son”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*sewH-",
        "t": "to bear; give birth"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *sewH- (“to bear; give birth”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:sone<id:son>",
        "id": "male offspring"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "sonn",
      "sonn#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "sone",
      "sone#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "sun",
      "sun#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "sune",
      "sune#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "sunu",
      "sunu#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*sunu",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/sunu"
    ],
    [
      "*sunuz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/sunuz"
    ],
    [
      "*suHnús",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/suHnús"
    ],
    [
      "*sewH-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/sewH-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "One's male offspring.",
        "A male adopted person in relation to his adoptive parents.",
        "A male person who has such a close relationship with an older or otherwise more authoritative person that he can be regarded as a son of the other person.",
        "A male person considered to have been significantly shaped by social conflict."
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 17947
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 4,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To produce (i.e. bear, father, beget) a son. · To address (someone) as "son".

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

From Middle English sonen, sunen, from the noun (see above).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionsonenenm
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": "sonen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English sonen"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "sonen",
      "sonen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "sunen",
      "sunen#Middle_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To produce (i.e. bear, father, beget) a son.",
        "To address (someone) as \"son\"."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
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  }
}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

Son cubano, a genre of music and dance blending Spanish and African elements that originated in Cuba during the late 19th century.

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

From Spanish son (literally “tone, sound”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Borrowed-form mentionsones
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "es",
        "3": "son",
        "lit": "tone, sound"
      },
      "expansion": "Spanish son (literally “tone, sound”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "son",
      "son#Spanish"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Son cubano, a genre of music and dance blending Spanish and African elements that originated in Cuba during the late 19th century."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable"
      ],
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}

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 son →

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-c29u