Origin and history of wife

Middle English wif, wyf, from Old English wif (neuter) "woman, human female, lady," also in late Old English, "female partner in a sanctioned union" (wedded wife). This is from Proto-Germanic *wīfa- (source also of Old Saxon, Old Frisian wif, Old Norse vif, Danish and Swedish viv, Middle Dutch, Dutch wijf, Old High German wib, German Weib), a word of uncertain origin and disputed etymology, not found in Gothic.

The general sense of "woman" was long preserved in provincial English and is in midwife, old wives' tale (old wife "elderly woman," often a term of disparagement, is by c. 1200). The sense of "mistress of a household" (late 14c.) survives in housewife; and the later restricted sense of "tradeswoman of humble rank" in fishwife.

Apparently felt as inadequate in its basic sense, leading to the more distinctive formation wifman (source of woman).

The more usual Indo-European word is represented in English by queen/quean. Words for "woman" also double for "wife" in some languages. Some proposed PIE roots for wife include *weip- "to twist, turn, wrap," perhaps with sense of "veiled person" (see vibrate); and more recently *ghwibh-, a proposed root meaning "shame," also "pudenda," but the only examples of it would be the Germanic words and Tocharian (a lost IE language of central Asia) kwipe, kip "female pudenda."

Dutch wijf now means, in slang, "girl, babe," having softened somewhat from earlier sense of "bitch." The Modern German cognate (Weib) also tends to be slighting or derogatory; Middle High German wip in early medieval times was "woman, female person," vrouwe (Frau) being retained for "woman of gentle birth, lady;" but from c. 1200 wip "took on a common, almost vulgar tone that restricted its usage in certain circles" and largely has been displaced by Frau.

It is attested by 1883 as "passive partner in a homosexual couple." Wife-swapping "interchange of marital partners" is attested by 1954.

"take a wife, marry," late 14c., rare, from wife (n.).