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Origin and history of vicinage

vicinage(n.)

early 14c., vesinage, "a neighborhood, a vicinity, the place or places nearby," from Old French vesinage, visenage, from Latin vicinus "near, neighboring" (see vicinity). By 1590s as "condition of being a neighbor." The spelling is a 16c. classical correction.

also from early 14c.

Entries linking to vicinage

vicinity(n.)

1550s, "nearness in place, quality of being near;" from French vicinité and directly from Latin vicinitas "of or pertaining to neighbors or a neighborhood," as a noun, "neighborhood, nearness, proximity," from vicinus (adj.) "of the neighborhood, near, neighboring," as a noun "the neighborhood, a neighbor," from vicus "group of houses, village," related to the -wick, -wich in English place names (from PIE root *weik- (1) "clan, settlement").

It is attested by 1796 in English as "neighborhood, surrounding district" in the phrase in the vicinity of "near or close to." Compare vicinage.

*weik-(1)

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "clan, social unit above the household."

It might form all or part of: antoecian; bailiwick; Brunswick; diocese; ecology; economy; ecumenical; metic; nasty; parish; parochial; vicinage; vicinity; viking; villa; village; villain; villanelle; -ville; villein; Warwickshire; wick (n.2) "dairy farm."

It might also be the source of: Sanskrit visah "house," vit "dwelling, house, settlement;" Avestan vis "house, village, clan;" Old Persian vitham "house, royal house;" Greek oikos "house;" Latin villa "country house, farm," vicus "village, group of houses;" Lithuanian viešpats "master of the house;" Old Church Slavonic visi "village;" Gothic weihs "village."

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