Etymology

hedge

H4E1D2G2E1

Today it means: A thicket of bushes or other shrubbery, especially one planted as a fence between two portions of land, or to separate the parts of a garden. Full definition →

Middle English hegge ← Old English heċġ ← Proto-West Germanic *haggju
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hedge · noun1

  1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*kagʰyóm“enclosure”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*hagjō
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*haggju
  4. Old English · inherited fromheċġ
  5. Middle English · inherited fromhegge
  6. English todayhedge

From Middle English hegge, from Old English heċġ, from Proto-West Germanic *haggju, from Proto-Germanic *hagjō, from Proto-Indo-European *kagʰyóm (“enclosure”). Cognate with Dutch heg, German Hecke. Doublet of hey (a choreographic figure) and quay. More at haw.

hedge · verb2

  1. Middle English · inherited fromheggen
  2. English todayhedge

Inherited from Middle English heggen, from the noun (see above).

Words from the same roots

Proto-West Germanic*haggju all →

Haag

Proto-Indo-European*kagʰyóm all →

quay

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.