PIE *per- (forward, through) produced 'for,' 'first,' 'far,' 'provide,' 'progress,' and 'prototype' — one massive root.
Definition
A Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'forward, through, in front of, before,' one of the most prolific spatial and relational roots in the family, generating prepositions, prefixes, and independent words across all branches.
The Full Story
Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4000–3000 BCEwell-attested
Reconstructed PIE *per- (through, forward, before, in front of, first) is among the oldest and most productive preposition-roots in the entire Indo-European family, with reflexes confirmed in every major branch. The root carries a cluster of related spatial andtemporalmeanings: motion forward through space, position in front, and temporal priority (being first or before). Its extended forms *pro- (before, in front of, for), *preh₂- (before), and *prH-wo- (first) generatedLatin 'prō' (for, before, in front of), 'prīmus' (first), 'prior' (earlier, former), and 'prae-' (before, in advance) — the source of
Did you know?
The Englishwords 'for,' 'first,' 'from,' 'forth,' 'far,' and 'further' are all siblings — every one descends from PIE *per- through Germanic. Meanwhile, 'paradise' also derives from this root: it comes from OldPersian 'pairidaēza' (an enclosed park), literally 'walled around,' from 'pairi-' (around, from *per-) + 'daēza' (wall). So paradise is, etymologically, just a fenced-in garden
.' The Lithuanian cognate 'per' means 'through.' This root underlies more English words than almost any other PIE morpheme. Key roots: *per- (Proto-Indo-European: "forward, through, in front of").