Fitch
/fɪtʃ/noun
A European polecat or its fur, especially in historical fur-trade contexts.
Did you know?English fitch comes through Anglo-Norman and Middle French from a Germanic animal name, and it later became a term for the animal’s prized pelt in the fur trade.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*fitiz?
“A reconstructed Germanic animal name, probably referring to a polecat or related mustelid”
Old French
OF
fissel / fissele
“A form used for the polecat or its fur in medieval French tradition”
Anglo-Norman
AN
fitche
“Polecat; the animal’s fur”
Middle English
ME
fiche / fitche
“Polecat; fur from the polecat”
Modern English
EN
fitch
“A polecat or its fur”