noun
Origin: ME < OE suth, akin to OHG sund-, ON suthr < Gmc *suntha- (understood as sun side < IE *sun-, sun), prob. < *swintha-, strong, sound, to the right side, in reference to the east-facing position during prayer
adjective
adverb
See south in American Heritage Dictionary 4
noun
Origin:
Origin: Middle English
Origin: , from Old English sūth; see sāwel- in Indo-European roots
. Word History: Though a south-facing house on the north side of a street sometimes gets more sun, etymologically speaking, the sunny side of the street is the south side. “South” in Old English was sūth. This came from an earlier *sunth, from a still earlier *sunthaz, “sunny,” whose first element, *sun-, means “sun.” As the first word in compounds, Old English sūth was subject to shortening, showing up in Modern English pronounced (sŭ). This is seen in place names like Suffolk (where the “south folk” were; compare Norfolk), Sutton, “south town,” and Sussex, the location of the “South Saxons” (whose eastern and western cousins were located in Essex and Wessex, respectively).Learn more about south