While/among/amid vs whilst/amongst/amidst
While/among/amid vs whilst/amongst/amidst
Which of the foregoing variants is older?
Unpacking English, Bit by Bit
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While, among, and amid are much older. I quote:
Whiles is recorded from early 13c.; whilst is from late 14c., with excrescent -st as in amongst, amidst.
amongst - a variant of among, mid-13c., amonges, from among with adverbial genitive. Parasitic -t first attested 16c
amidst - a variant of amid with adverbial gen. -s and parasitic -t. Amidde became amyddes (13c.) and acquired a -t by 1560s, probably by association with superlatives in -st.
AnWulf Sep-14-2011
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Thank you.
sigurd Sep-20-2011
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