Etymologically
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trek

Etymology and origin of the English word trek

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1849
Borrowed from
Afrikaans trek
Ultimate origin
Dutch (trekken)

Pronunciation

Etymology

It is borrowed from Afrikaans trek (“a journey, the drawing of a wagon”),[2][3][4] from Dutch trekken, to march, journey, originally to draw, pull,[2][3] from Middle Dutch trecken, cognate with Middle Low German trecken and Old High German trechan, to pull.[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

In South Africa, a stage of a journey by ox wagon: 1849;[3][6][5] the verb, to travel or migrate by ox wagon, 1850, in R. G. Cumming's Hunter's Life in South Africa.[2][3][6]

Semantic evolution

An organized migration by ox wagon, especially the Great Trek of the Boers in 1835–37, is from 1890.[6][7] Figurative and transferred uses are from 1895,[6] and a long or hard journey in general, now in use everywhere, from 1941.[6] The American Heritage note remarks that fans of Star Trek may be surprised that the word began with oxen.[7]

Timeline

  • 1849 – a stage of an ox-wagon journey.[3][6]
  • 1850 – to trek (verb).[2][6]
  • 1890 – a Boer migration.[6]
  • 1941 – any long journey.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A long and often difficult journey, especially on foot.
  2. (South Africa) A journey by ox wagon, or a migration such as the Great Trek.

Verb

  1. To make a long or difficult journey; to hike.

Word family

  • trekker
  • untrekked

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 Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Trek.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/trek. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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