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Origin and history of pathfinder

pathfinder(n.)

"one who discovers a way, an explorer or pioneer," 1839 (Cooper), from path + finder.

"Pathfinder!"
"So they call me, young woman, and many a great lord has got a title that he did not half so well merit; though, if truth be said, I rather pride myself in finding my way where there is no path, than in finding it where there is. But the regular troops are by no means particular, and half the time they don't know the difference between a trail and a path, though one is a matter for the eye, while the other is little more than scent."
[Cooper, "The Pathfinder"]

also from 1839

Entries linking to pathfinder

finder(n.)

c. 1300, agent noun from find (v.).

path(n.)

Old English paþ, pæþ "narrow passageway or route across land, a track worn by the feet of people or animals treading it," from West Germanic *patha- (source also of Old Frisian path, Middle Dutch pat, Dutch pad, Old High German pfad, German Pfad "path"), a word of uncertain origin, not attested in Old Norse or Gothic.

The original initial -p- in a Germanic word is an etymological puzzle. Don Ringe ("From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic," Oxford 2006), reflecting an old theory, describes it as "An obvious loan from Iranian ..., clearly borrowed after Grimm's Law had run its course." Watkins says the word is "probably borrowed (? via Scythian) from Iranian *path-," from PIE root *pent- "to tread, go, pass" (source of Avestan patha "way;" see find (v.)), but this is too much of a stretch for OED and others. In Scotland and Northern England, commonly a steep ascent of a hill or in a road.

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    More to explore

    scout
    late 14c., scouten, "observe or explore as a scout, travel in search of information," from Middle English scout-watch "sentinel, guard" (compare scout (n.)) or else Old French escouter "to listen, to heed" (Modern French écouter), from Latin auscultare "to listen to, give heed to
    guide
    late 14c., "to lead, direct, conduct," from Old French guider "to guide, lead, conduct" (14c.), earlier guier, from Frankish *witan "show the way" or a similar Germanic source, from Proto-Germanic *witanan "to look after, guard, ascribe to, reproach" (source also of German weisen
    squinch
    Cooper's Pathfinder (1840) threatens an enemy that a fire he sets will be "squinched in his own blood."...
    expert
    late 14c., "having had experience; skillful," from Old French expert, espert "experienced, practiced, skilled" and directly from Latin expertus (contracted from *experitus), "tried, proved, known by experience," past participle of experiri "to try, test," from ex "out of" (see ex
    proselyte
    "one who changes from one sect, creed, etc. to another," late 14c., proselite, "a convert, especially "a heathen convert to Judaism" (in Biblical writings, e.g. Matthew xxiii.15, Ezekiel xiv.7), from Old French proselite (13c., Modern French prosélyte), from Late Latin proselytus
    communism
    1843, "social system based on collective ownership," from French communisme (c. 1840), from commun (Old French comun "common, general, free, open, public;" see common (adj.)) + -isme (see -ism). Originally a theory of society. As the name of a political or economic  theory w
    insight
    c. 1200, innsihht, "sight with the 'eyes' of the mind, mental vision, understanding from within," from in (prep.) + sight (n.). But the meaning often seems to be felt as "sight into" (something else), and so the sense shifted to "penetrating understanding into character or hidden
    keep
    Middle English kēpen, from late Old English cepan (past tense cepte) "to seize, hold; seek after, desire," also "to observe or carry out in practice; look out for, regard, pay attention to," from Proto-Germanic *kopjan, which is of uncertain origin. Old English cepan was used c.
    righteous
    an early 16c. alteration of the older word, rightwise, which is from Old English rihtwis, of actions, "characterized by justice, morally right," of persons, "just, upright; sinless, conforming to divine law," from riht (see right (adj.1)) + wis "wise, way, manner" (see wise (adj.
    Babel
    capital of Babylon, now a ruin near Hillah in Iraq, late 14c., from Late Latin, from Hebrew Babhel (Genesis xi), from Akkadian bab-ilu "Gate of God" (from bab "gate" + ilu "god"). The name is a translation of Sumerian Ka-dingir. The meaning "a confused medley of sounds" (1520s) i

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