ten (English)

Where does "ten" come from?

The English numeral 'ten' traces directly back to the Proto-Indo-European root '*déḱm̥'[1][4]. It developed into Proto-Germanic '*tehun'[1][5], which continued into Proto-West Germanic '*tehun'[1][6]. By the Anglo-Saxon period, this ancestral form had become Old English 'tīen'[1][3], which later evolved into Middle English 'ten'[1][2] before arriving at modern English 'ten'[1].

Open questions

The deeper origin of Proto-Indo-European '*déḱm̥' remains uncertain, though it may derive from a root meaning 'hand'. [4]
Proto-Germanic '*tehun' might derive from '*déḱm̥' or alternatively from an earlier form '*tehunt' rooted in '*déḱm̥t'. [5]

Full etymology tree

ten (English), 'The number occurring after nine and before eleven, represented in Arabic numerals (base ten) as 10 and in Roman numerals as X.'
- inherited ten (Middle English), 'ten'
  - inherited tien (Old English), 'ten'
    - inherited *tehun (Proto-West Germanic), 'ten'
      - inherited *tehun (Proto-Germanic), 'ten'

Ancestors

ten (Middle English)
tien (Old English)
*tehun (Proto-West Germanic)
*tehun (Proto-Germanic)
*déḱm̥ (Proto-Indo-European)

Cognates and doublets

tiin (North Frisian)
tjoon (Saterland Frisian)
ten (Scots)
tsien (West Frisian)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris