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FernEnglish (en) · Unnumbered etymologySource text
From fern; in the case of the surname, it was given to someone who lived in a place where there was an abundance of these plants.
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗fernEnglish (en) · Unnumbered etymologySource text
From Middle English fern, from Old English fearn, from Proto-West Germanic *farn, from Proto-Germanic *farnaz (“fern”), from Proto-Indo-European *pornóm (“feather, wing; fern, leaf”), from *p(t)erH- (“fern”). Cognates Cognate with Scots fairn (“fern”), North Frisian farne (“fern”), West Frisian fear (“fern”), Dutch varen (“fern”), German Farn, Farm (“fern”), Luxembourgish Far (“fern”); also Breton raden (“fern”), Cornish reden (“ferns; brackens”), Welsh rhedyn (“ferns; brackens”), Latvian paparde (“fern; bracken”), spārns (“wing”), Lithuanian spar̃nas (“wing”), Bulgarian and Macedonian папрат (paprat, “fern”), Czech kapraď (“fern”), Polish paproć (“fern”), Russian па́пороть (páporotʹ), па́поротник (páporotnik, “fern”), Serbo-Croatian па̏пра̄т, pȁprāt (“fern”), Slovak papraď (“fern”), Slovene praprot (“fern”), Ukrainian па́пороть (páporotʹ, “fern”), Central Kurdish پەڕ (perr, “feather”), Persian پر (par, “feather; wing; leaf”), Ashkun pār (“leaf”), Kamkata-viri por, přor (“leaf”), Prasuni parëg (“leaf”), Sanskrit पर्ण (parṇá, “wing; leaf”).
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗INDEPENDENT SOURCE LIBRARY
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Mayhew–Skeat (1888)
1888; pinned HTML transcription updated October 28, 2024- FernMiddle English · word_fern_sb
Fern, sb. fern, C2; ferene, dat., S2. Phr.: aisschen of ferne, fern ashes, MD. Comb.: fern-asshen, fern ashes, C2.—AS. fearn (Voc.): OHG. farn.
Read the full source record → - FernMiddle English · word_fern_adj
Fern, adj. and adv. old, long ago, C2, PP; ferne, CM; furn, MD. Comb.: fern-ȝeres, past years; fern yere, formerly, PP.—AS. fyrn (see Sievers); cp. OS. furn, forn, fern, Goth. fairnis.
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