Wordstǣrcræft
Se '''wordstǣrcræft''' is sēo lār þāra [[word]]a frumena. Suma word sind gecumen of ōðerum geþēodum, and habbaþ forscapen (þæt frume word hatte '''wordbānu''').

Þurh ealde trahtas and geānlīcunga wiþ ōðerum geþēodum, wordstǣrwitan sēcaþ eftmacian þāra worda stǣr — hwonne hie cwōmon in þæt geþēode, and hwanon, and hū hira scyppung and andgit āwendedon.

<!--
'''Etymology''' is the study of the origins of [[word]]s. Some words have been derived from other [[language]]s, possibly in a changed form (the source words are called ''etymons''). Through old texts and comparisons with other [[language]]s, [[etymologist]]s try to reconstruct the [[history]] of words — when they entered a language, from what source, and how their form and meaning changed.

Etymologists also try to reconstruct information about languages that are too old for any direct information (such as writing) to be known. By comparing words in related languages, one can learn about their shared parent language. In this way, [[root (linguistics)|word roots]] have been found which can be traced all the way back to the origin of the [[Indo-European]] [[language family]].

The word ''etymology'' itself comes from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''ήτυμος'' (''ētymos'', meaning of a word) and ''λόγος'' (''lōgos'', science).

==Etymology of English==

As a language, English is derived from the [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]], a dialect of [[West Germanic]] (as was Old [[Low German]]), although its current vocabulary includes words from many  languages.  The Anglo-Saxon roots can be seen in the similarity of numbers in [[English language|English]] and [[German language|German]], particularly ''six~sechs'', ''seven~sieben'', ''eight~acht'' and ''ten~zehn''.  [[Pronoun]]s are also cognate: ''I~ich''; ''thou~Du''; ''we~wir''; ''she~sie''.  However, [[historical linguistics|language change]] has eroded many grammatical elements, such as the [[noun case]] system, which is greatly simplified in Modern English; and certain elements of vocabulary, much of which is borrowed from French.  In fact, more than half of the words in English either come from the [[French language]], or have a French [[cognate]].  However, the most common root words are still of [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] origin.

French was introduced into [[England]] when the [[Normans]] conquered England in 1066 (see [[Norman Conquest]]). During the French reign on the British isles, the ruling class spoke French while the peasants spoke the English of the time. This led to many paired words of French and English origin.  For example, ''beef'' is cognate with the modern French ''bœuf'', meaning "steer". ''Veal'' with ''veau'', meaning "calf". ''Pork'' with ''porc'', meaning "pig", and ''poultry'' with ''poulet'', meaning "chicken". 

English words of more than two syllables are likely to come from French, often with modified terminations. For example, the French words for ''syllable'', ''modified'', ''terminations'' and ''example'' are ''syllabe'', ''modifié'', ''terminaisons'' and ''exemple''.

English has proven accommodating to words from many languages.  Scientific terminology relies heavily on words of [[Latin language|Latin]] and [[Greek language|Greek]] origin.  [[Spanish language|Spanish]] has contributed many words, particularly in the southwestern United States.  Examples include ''buckaroo'' from ''vaquero'' or "cowboy", ''alligator'' from ''el legarto'' or "the lizard", and ''rodeo''.  ''Cuddle'', ''eerie'' and ''greed'' come from [[Scots language|Scots]], ''behemoth'' from [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], ''perestroika'', ''balalaika'', ''taiga'', ''tundra'' and ''sputnik'' from [[Russian language|Russian]], and ''lagniappe'' from [[Quechua language|Quechua]].  See also [[loanword]].

==Basic ideas in etymology==

* Usually, words start with a more complicated spelling which becomes simpler (for example, by abbreviation).  The patterns by which words are simplified constantly change.
* Slang words may enter the common language. Sometimes common words may suddenly become slang.
* Vulgar words may become [[euphemism]]s for other words and sometimes euphemisms become vulgarisms.
* Words may become joined together, as in [[portmanteau]] words.
* Words may start off as [[acronym]]s.
* The boundaries between words may move.  For example, "a napron" became "an apron".
* Words come from specialist trades, different cultures, and even works of literature. Words may be named after a particular place ([[List of toponyms|toponyms]]) or after a particular person ([[eponym]]).

==Sēo ēac==
*[[Lists of etymologies]]
*[[Back-formation]]
*[[Cognate]]
*[[List of company name etymologies|Company names etymology]]
*[[List of country name etymologies|Country names etymology]]
*[[List of computer term etymologies|Computer terms origins]]
*[[Fake etymology]]
*[[Folk etymology]]
*[[Family name etymology]]
*[[False cognate]]
*[[False friend]]
*[[Wiktionary:Wiktionary_Appendix:First_names|Given name etymology]]
*[[Placename etymology]]
*[[Proto-language]]
*[[Semantic progression]]
*[[Spanish etymology]]
*[[Suppletion]].

==External links==
* [http://www.wordorigins.org/index.htm Word and phrase origins] 
* [http://www.takeourword.com/bibliography.html Bibliography of etymological dictionaries]
* [http://www.etymonline.com/ Etymonline An online etymology dictionary]
* [http://www.westegg.com/etymology/ Words origins]

-->

[[Flocc:Stǣrlic geþēodcræft]]
Se wordstǣrcræft is sēo lār þāra worda frumena. Suma word sind gecumen of ōðerum geþēodum, and habbaþ forscapen (þæt frume word hatte wordbānu).

Þurh ealde trahtas and geānlīcunga wiþ ōðerum geþēodum, wordstǣrwitan sēcaþ eftmacian þāra worda stǣr — hwonne hie cwōmon in þæt geþēode, and hwanon, and hū hira scyppung and andgit āwendedon.

Flocc:Stǣrlic geþēodcræft