Etymologically
Log in

heritage

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 03:24. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈher.ɪ.tɪdʒ/, US /ˈher.ɪ.t̬ɪdʒ/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English eritage, heritage, borrowed from Old French eritage (“inheritance, ancestral estate”) (modern French héritage),[2][3][4] from heriter (“to inherit”) and the suffix -age,[2][5] from Late Latin hērēditāre,[2][4] ultimately from Latin hērēs (“heir”) (genitive hērēdis; see heir).[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A spiritual inheritance or bequest: probably before 1200 in Barnhart, in the Ancrene Riwle; that which may be inherited, before 1225 in the OED.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The portion allotted to someone, such as the faithful's share in heaven, is from before 1225,[6] and the people of Israel as God's own possession from before 1340.[6] In Scots law, heritage is land and similar property that passes to the heir (1508).[6] That which comes from one's birth, an inherited lot, is from before 1621, the 1620s in Etymonline.[6][3] The sense of buildings, landscapes and traditions valued as part of a nation's history, and the attributive use in heritage site and heritage industry, are from about 1970.[6][7] The verb, to inherit, was used in 1382.[6]

Timeline

  • before 1200 – a spiritual inheritance.[2]
  • a1225 – what is inherited.[6]
  • 1508 – heritable land (Scots law).[6]
  • a1621 – one's inherited lot.[6]
  • 1970 – heritage, as of historic sites.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The traditions, buildings and culture handed down from earlier generations, valued as part of a society's history.
  2. Something inherited at birth, such as status or character.
  3. Property that is or can be inherited; an inheritance.
  • heir
  • inherit
  • heritable
  • heredity
  • hereditary

Usage notes

The AHD compares heritage with inheritance, legacy and tradition, all for something immaterial handed down from one generation to the next.[8]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c 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. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin