Etymology
1. "act of running," c.1300, from O.N.
ras "running, rush (of water)," cognate with O.E.
ræs, which became M.E.
resen "attack, incursion," but did not survive into Mod.Eng. Both O.N. and O.E. are from P.Gmc.
*ræs- (cf. M.Du.
rasen "to rave, rage," Ger.
rasen). Originally a northern word, it became general in Eng. c.1550. Meaning "contest of speed" first recorded 1513 (the verb in this sense is from 1672).
Race-horse is from 1626. Meaning "strong current of water" is from 1375, possibly influenced by O.Fr.
raz, which had a similar meaning, and is probably from Breton
raz "a strait, narrow channel;" this Fr. source also may have given
race its meaning of "channel of a stream" (especially an artificial one to a mill), recorded from 1565. The verb, in ref. to an engine, is from 1862.
2. Etymology tree
3. Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁s-der.
4. Proto-Germanic *rēsōder.
5. Proto-West Germanic *rās
6. Old English rǣs
7. ▲
8. Proto-Germanic *rēsō
9. Old Norse rásbor.
10. Middle English race
11. English race
12. From Middle English race, partially from Old English rǣs (“a race, swift or violent running, rush, onset”), from Proto-West Germanic *rās; and partially from Old Norse rás (“a running, race”); both from Proto-Germanic *rēsō (“a course”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁s- (“to flow, rush”). Cognate with Middle Low German râs ("a strong current"; whence German Low German Raas (“mad rush, rage, fury”)), Dutch ras (“a strong whirling current”), Danish ræs, Norwegian and Swedish ras, Norwegian rås. See: Danish '
ræs', Swedish '
ras'.
Verbs referencing "race"
Danish
race.