Etymologically
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fringe

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /fɹɪnd͡ʒ/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English frenge, borrowed from Old French frenge (“thread, fringe, border”),[2][3][4] from Vulgar Latin *frimbia, a metathesis of Late Latin fimbria,[2][3][4] from Latin fimbriae (“fibres, threads, fringe”), of uncertain origin.[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

An ornamental border of hanging threads: 1354 (frenge) in Barnhart, the early 14th century in Etymonline;[2][3] the OED's earliest quotation, for the manufactured trimming, is from 1327.[5] The verb is implied earlier in frenged (1275).[2]

Semantic evolution

The spelling fringe developed in modern English, like hinge and singe.[2] A border or edging in general is from the 1640s,[3][5] and hair cut short over the forehead from 1876.[5] In optics, bands of light and dark are called fringes from 1704.[5] The figurative sense, the outer edge or margin, as of society, is from 1894;[2][3] as an adjective, unconventional or peripheral, it is by 1809,[3] and fringe benefits are from 1952.[3]

Timeline

  • 1275 – frenged.[2]
  • 1327 – a fringe trimming.[5]
  • 1704 – optical fringes.[5]
  • 1876 – a fringe of hair.[5]
  • 1894 – the fringe of society.[2]
  • 1952 – fringe benefits.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A decorative edging of hanging threads, cords or tassels.
  2. (chiefly British) Hair cut short and hanging over the forehead; a bang.
  3. An outer edge or periphery.
  4. Members of a group holding extreme or unconventional views.

Adjective

  1. Unofficial or unconventional: fringe theatre.

Verb

  1. To decorate with a fringe, or to border.

Word family

  • fringy
  • fringeless
  • fringelike
  • fringehead
  • underfringe
  • fringe benefit
  • fringe-toed lizard
  • fringe tree

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press