heritage English · revision 5705

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1200|origins=la heres}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈher.ɪ.tɪdʒ/, US /ˈher.ɪ.t̬ɪdʒ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English eritage, heritage, [[bor|fro|eritage|t=inheritance, ancestral estate]] (modern French héritage),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[m|fro|heriter|t=to inherit]] and the suffix [[m|fro|-age]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) from [[la-lat|hērēditāre]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) ultimately from [[la|hērēs|t=heir]] (genitive hērēdis; see [[heir]]).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==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.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The portion allotted to someone, such as the faithful's share in heaven, is from before 1225,^(OED 1989) and the people of Israel as God's own possession from before 1340.^(OED 1989) In Scots law, heritage is land and similar property that passes to the heir (1508).^(OED 1989) That which comes from one's birth, an inherited lot, is from before 1621, the 1620s in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) 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.^(OED 1989)^(Collins 2023) The verb, to inherit, was used in 1382.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1200 – a spiritual inheritance.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * a1225 – what is inherited.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1508 – heritable land (Scots law).^(OED 1989)

+ * a1621 – one's inherited lot.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1970 – heritage, as of historic sites.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The [[tradition|alt=traditions]], buildings and culture handed down from earlier generations, valued as part of a society's history.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Something inherited at [[birth]], such as status or character.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Property that is or can be inherited; an [[inheritance]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[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.^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}