Etymologically
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sheriff

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈʃɛɹɪf/, /ˈʃɛɹəf/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English shir-reve, sherref, from late Old English sċīrġerēfa (“representative of the royal authority in a shire”),[2][3][4][5] from sċīr (“shire”) (see shire) and ġerēfa (“chief, official, reeve”) (see reeve).[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The officer representing royal authority in an English shire before the Norman Conquest: about 1034.[6][2]

Semantic evolution

In Scotland a sheriff was from the 12th century a high officer of a county, and later a judge (1375 in the OED).[6] In the American colonies and later the US states, a county official chiefly responsible for keeping the peace, it is from the 1660s (1662).[3][6] Sheriff's tooth (late 14th century) was a tax levied to pay for the sheriff's food during court sessions.[3] A sheriff's sale is recorded by 1798.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1034 – an Anglo-Saxon royal officer.[6]
  • 1375 – in Scotland.[6]
  • late 14th century – sheriff's tooth.[3]
  • 1662 – in America.[6]
  • 1798 – sheriff's sale.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. (US) An elected officer of a county, responsible for keeping the peace and enforcing the law.
  2. (England and Wales) The chief officer of the Crown in a county, now with mainly ceremonial duties: the High Sheriff.
  3. (Scotland) A judge in a sheriff court.

Word family

  • sheriffdom
  • subsheriff
  • undersheriff
  • sheriffalty
  • sheriffwick
  • shire
  • reeve
  • shrievalty

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g 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 Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press