Darkness
/ˈdɑːrk.nəs/noun
The state or quality of being dark; absence of light.
Did you know?English darkness comes from Old English deorcnes, and its root is so old that it appears across Germanic languages as a word for dimness, gloom, and concealment rather than any mystical force.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*derkaz / *darkaz
“dark, dim, obscured”
Old English
OE
deorcnes
“darkness, gloom, obscurity”
Middle English
ME
derknesse
“darkness, lack of light”
Modern English
English
darkness
“the state of being dark; absence of light”