hostage

The story

1. Vulgar Latin · derived fromobsidāticum“condition of being held captive”
2. Old French · derived fromhostage
3. Middle English · inherited fromhostage
4. English todayhostage

From Middle English hostage, ostage, from Old French hostage, ostage. This, in turn, is either from Old French hoste (“host”) + -age (in which case the sense development is from taking someone into "lodging" to taking them into "captivity", to applying the term to a captive), or is from Vulgar Latin obsidāticum (“condition of being held captive”), from Latin obses (“hostage, captive”), with the initial h- added under the influence of hoste or another word. Displaced native Old English ġīsl.