Etymology

narrow

nar·row
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Today it means: Having a small width; not wide; having opposite edges or sides that are close, especially by comparison to length or depth. Full definition →

Middle English narow ← Old English nearu ← Proto-West Germanic *naru
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narrow · adjective, noun1

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*(s)ner-“to turn, bend, twist, constrict”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*narwaz“constricted, narrow”
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*naru
  4. Old English · inherited fromnearu“narrow, strait, confined, constricted, not spacious, limited, petty; limited, poor, restricted; oppressive, causing anxiety (of that which restricts free action of body or mind), causing or accompanied by difficulty, hardship, oppressive; oppressed, not having free action; strict, severe”
  5. Middle English · inherited fromnarow
  6. English todaynarrow

From Middle English narow, narowe, narewe, narwe, naru, from Old English nearu (“narrow, strait, confined, constricted, not spacious, limited, petty; limited, poor, restricted; oppressive, causing anxiety (of that which restricts free action of body or mind), causing or accompanied by difficulty, hardship, oppressive; oppressed, not having free action; strict, severe”), from Proto-West Germanic *naru, from Proto-Germanic *narwaz (“constricted, narrow”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ner- (“to turn, bend, twist, constrict”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian naar, noar, noor, nåår (“narrow”), Saterland Frisian noar (“narrow”), Dutch naar (“nasty, scary; sickening, unpleasant”), Danish and Swedish nor (“narrow strait”); also Sanskrit नृत् (nṛt, “to dance; act on stage, represent”).

narrow · verb2

  1. Middle English · inherited fromnarwen“to narrow”
  2. English todaynarrow

From Middle English narwen (“to narrow”); see there for more details, but ultimately derived from the noun.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.