*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of yon

From Middle English yon, from Old English ġeon, from Proto-Germanic *jainaz. Cognate with Dutch geen and German jener.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
adv

yonder.

pron

That one or those over there.

det

Distant, but within sight; (that thing) just over there.

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

From Middle English yon, from Old English ġeon, from Proto-Germanic *jainaz. Cognate with Dutch geen and German jener.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionyonenm
  • Inherited-form mentionġeonang
  • Inherited-form mention*jainazgem-pro
  • Cognate mentiongeennl
  • Cognate mentionjenerde
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": "yon"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English yon"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "ġeon"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English ġeon"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*jainaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *jainaz"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "geen"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch geen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "jener"
      },
      "expansion": "German jener"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "yon",
      "yon#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "ġeon",
      "geon#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*jainaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/jainaz"
    ],
    [
      "geen",
      "geen#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "jener",
      "jener#German"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adv",
      "glosses": [
        "yonder."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated",
        "dialectal",
        "not-comparable"
      ],
      "recordId": "290acb0e36638124212a256fcbf69d152c884f3c5eae71a7cac0d87d986c6335",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8226210e653ed345057777bf03427a23ea21f066f82262a6862716c94a81ff44",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 44082
    },
    {
      "pos": "pron",
      "glosses": [
        "That one or those over there."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated",
        "dialectal"
      ],
      "recordId": "a0fd71101ae068f377a559ce2a1e5987b3e5f84850987be9c7138764b7e2ac8d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "efbdbccebf5ab5b471800177f67df0146fd8d63cfdf5509b4c7463eaa44bbd30",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 44083
    },
    {
      "pos": "det",
      "glosses": [
        "Distant, but within sight; (that thing) just over there."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated",
        "dialectal"
      ],
      "recordId": "a358efb9ef4e95f7f060efe44fe525c528de1c78e5463d3eb5862c7fe1051447",
      "rawRecordSha256": "54c8eea4815fee5cc11400d7091a5243bbe5463c6b614b01af2e036c5d6552dd",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 44081
    }
  ],
  "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 yon →

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-eW9u