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Origin and history of fratricide

fratricide(n.)

mid-15c., "person who kills a brother;" 1560s, "act of killing a brother," from Latin fratricida "brother-slayer," from frater "brother" (from PIE root *bhrater- "brother") + cida "killer;" in the later use from cidum "a killing," both from caedere "to kill, to cut down" (from PIE root *kae-id- "to strike"). Among several Old English words for this were broðorbana "one who kills a brother;" broðorcwealm "act of killing a brother."

also from mid-15c.

Entries linking to fratricide

fratricidal(adj.)

"pertaining to or involving fratricide," 1804, from fratricide + -al (1).

*bhrater-

bhrāter-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "brother." 

It might form all or part of: br'er; brethren; ‌‌brother; bully (n.); confrere; fraternal; fraternity; fraternize; fratricide; friar; friary; pal.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit bhrátár-, Old Persian brata, Greek phratér, Latin frater, Old Irish brathir, Welsh brawd, Lithuanian broterėlis, Old Prussian brati, Old Church Slavonic bratru, Czech bratr, Polish brat, Russian bratŭ, Kurdish bera; Old English broþor, Old Norse broðir, German Bruder, Gothic bróþar. 

*kae-id-

*kaə-id-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to strike."

It might form all or part of: abscise; avicide; biocide; caesarian; caesura; cement; chisel; -cide; circumcise; circumcision; concise; decide; decision; deicide; excise (v.); excision; felicide; feticide; filicide; floricide; fratricide; fungicide; gallinicide; genocide; germicide; herbicide; homicide; incise; incision; incisor; infanticide; insecticide; legicide; liberticide; libricide; matricide; parricide; patricide; pesticide; precise; precision; prolicide; scissors; senicide; spermicide; suicide; uxoricide; verbicide.

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit skhidati "beats, tears;" Latin caedere "to strike down, fell, slay;" Lithuanian kaišti "shave;" Armenian xait'em "to stab;" Albanian qeth "to shave;" Middle Dutch heien "to drive piles," Old High German heia "wooden hammer," German heien "beat."

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    Cain
    elder son of Adam and Eve, the first murderer and the first fratricide, from Hebrew Qayin, literally "created one," also...Figurative use for "murderer, fratricide" is from late 14c....
    prolicide
    We have long had parricide, fratricide, and infanticide, all (if I may use the figure of speech,) of the same family; and...
    demurrer
    1530s, "a pause, a delay" (a sense now obsolete); 1540 as legal pleading to the effect that, even conceding the facts to be as alleged by the opponent, he is not entitled to legal relief, from Anglo-French demurrer, Old French demorer "to delay, retard," from Latin demorari "to l
    fire
    Old English fyr "fire, a fire," from Proto-Germanic *fūr- (source also of Old Saxon fiur, Old Frisian fiur, Old Norse fürr, Middle Dutch and Dutch vuur, Old High German fiur, German Feuer "fire"), from PIE *perjos, from root *paewr- "fire." Current spelling is attested as early a
    rife
    Old English rife "abundant, of common occurrence, prevalent," often of hurtful or obnoxious things, from Proto-Germanic *rif- (source also of Old Norse rifr, Swedish river, Norwegian riv, Middle Dutch riif, Middle Low German rive "abundant, generous"), said to be from PIE root *r
    firing
    1540s, "action of applying fire or setting on fire," verbal noun from fire (v.). From c. 1600 as "act of discharging firearms." Firing squad is attested from 1891 in reference to military executions; earlier as "those selected to fire over the grave of anyone interred with milita
    execution
    late 14c., "a carrying out, a putting into effect; enforcement; performance (of a law, statute, etc.), the carrying out (of a plan, etc.)," from Anglo-French execucioun (late 13c.), Old French execucion "a carrying out" (of an order, etc.), from Latin executionem (nominative exec
    friendly
    Old English freondlic "well-disposed, kindly;" see friend (n.) + -ly (1). Related: Friendlily; friendliness. As an adverb Old English had freondliche, but by 14c. as the inflections wore off in English it had become indistinguishable from the adjective. Probably owing to that it
    institute
    early 14c., "to establish in office, appoint," from Latin institutus, past participle of instituere "to set up, put in place; arrange; found, establish; appoint, designate; govern, administer; teach, instruct," from in- "in" (from PIE root *en "in") + statuere "establish, to caus
    bachelor
    c. 1300, "young man;" also "youthful knight, novice in arms," from Old French bacheler, bachelor, bachelier (11c.) "knight bachelor," a young squire in training for knighthood, also "young man; unmarried man," and a university title. A word of uncertain origin. Perhaps it is from

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