Ancestor
/ˈænsɛstər/noun
A person from whom one is descended.
Did you know?Ancestor comes from Latin *antecessor*, a term for “one who goes before,” from *ante* (“before”) + *cedere* (“to go”), the same ancient root behind words tied to movement, yielding, and succession.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
antecessor
“one who goes before; a predecessor”
Late Latin
Latin
antecessor
“a forerunner or predecessor”
Old French
Old French
ancestre
“forefather; progenitor”
Middle English
English
auncestre
“forefather; one from whom a person is descended”
Modern English
English
ancestor
“a person from whom one is descended”