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Origin and history of curtsy

curtsy(n.)

1540s, "expression of respect," a variant of courtesy (q.v.). Specific meaning "a bending the knee and lowering the body as a gesture of respect" is from 1570s. Originally not exclusively feminine.

curtsy(v.)

"make a curtsy," 1550s, from curtsy (n.). Related: Curtsied; curtsying.

also from 1550s

Entries linking to curtsy

courtesy(n.)

c. 1200, curteisie, "courtly ideals; chivalry, chivalrous conduct; elegance of manners, politeness," also "a courteous act, act of civility or respect," from Old French curteisie, cortoisie "courtliness, noble sentiments; courteousness; generosity" (Modern French courtoisie), from curteis "courteous" (see courteous).

From c. 1300 as "good will, kindness," also "a reward, a gift;" mid-14c. as "refinement, gentlemanly conduct." A specialized sense of curteisie is the source of English curtsy. A courtesy title (1829) is one to which one has no valid claim but which is assumed or given by popular consent. Courtesy call "visit made for the sake of politeness" is by 1898.

curtsey

alternative spelling of curtsy.

*gher-(1)

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to grasp, enclose."

It might form all or part of: Asgard; carol; choir; choral; chorale; choric; chorister; chorus; cohort; cortege; court; courteous; courtesan; courtesy; courtier; curtilage; curtsy; garden; garth; gird; girdle; girt; girth; -grad; hangar; Hilda; Hildegard; Hortense; horticulture; jardiniere; kindergarten; Midgard; orchard; Terpsichore; Utgard; yard (n.1) "patch of ground around a house."

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit ghra- "house;" Albanian garth "hedge;" Greek khortos "pasture;" Phrygian -gordum "town;" Latin hortus "garden;" Old Irish gort "field," Breton garz "enclosure, garden;" Old English gyrdan "to gird," geard "fenced enclosure, garden," German Garten "garden." Lithuanian gardas "pen, enclosure," Old Church Slavonic gradu "town, city," and Russian gorod, -grad "town, city" belong to this group, but linguists dispute whether they are independent developments or borrowings from Germanic.

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    Trends of curtsy

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    bob
    "move up and down with a short, jerking motion," late 14c., bobben, probably connected to the Middle English bobben that meant "to strike in cruel jest, beat; fool, make a fool of, cheat, deceive" (early 14c.), which is perhaps from Old French bober "mock, deride," and perhaps ul
    obeisance
    sense in English altered late 14c. to "bending or prostration of the body as a gesture of submission or respect, a bow or curtsy...
    cheese
    then dropping down so they came to rest inflated and resembling a wheel of cheese; hence, used figuratively for "a deep curtsy...
    motion
    late 14c., mocioun, "process of moving; change of place, continuous variation of position;" also "suggestion, proposal or proposition formally made," from Old French mocion "movement, motion; change, alteration" (13c., Modern French motion) and directly from Latin motionem (nomin
    reverence
    late 13c., "honor, respect, deference (shown to someone), esteem heightened by awe," also of places or holy objects, from Old French reverence "respect, awe" and directly from Latin reverentia "awe, respect," from revereri "to stand in awe of, respect, honor, fear, be afraid of;
    greet
    Old English gretan "to come in contact with" in any sense ("attack, accost" as well as "salute, welcome," and "touch, take hold of, handle," as in hearpan gretan "to play the harp"), "seek out, approach," from West Germanic *grotjan (source also of Old Saxon grotian, Old Frisian
    bow
    [bend the body] Middle English bouen, from Old English bugan "to bend, become bent, have or assume a curved direction; to bow down, bend the body in condescension or reverence, to submit," also "to turn back" (class II strong verb; past tense beag, past participle bogen), from Pr
    gesture
    early 15c., "manner of carrying the body," from Medieval Latin gestura "bearing, behavior, mode of action," from Latin gestus "gesture, carriage, posture" (see gest). Restricted sense of "a movement of the body or a part of it, intended to express a thought or feeling," is from 1
    recognize
    early 15c., recognisen, "resume possession of land," a back-formation from recognizance, or else from Old French reconoiss-, present-participle stem of reconoistre "to know again, identify, recognize," from Latin recognoscere "acknowledge, recall to mind, know again; examine; cer
    congeries
    "a collection into one mass or aggregate," 1610s, from Latin congeries "heap, pile, collected mass," from congerere "to bring together, pile up," from assimilated form of com "with, together" (see con-) + gerere "to carry, perform" (see gest). False singular congery is attested b

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    Dictionary entries near curtsy
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