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You are correct. In fact old English didn’t have it as well. "Yes" comes from "gese" which means "So be it".
by Jakob 6y ago
You are correct. In fact old English didn’t have it as well. "Yes" comes from "gese" which means "So be it".
- im3w1l 6y agoAccording to wiktionary entry on Yea. From Middle English ye, ȝea, ya, ȝa, from Old English ġēa, iā (“yea, yes”), from Proto-Germanic ja (“yes, thus, so”), from Proto-Indo-European yē (“already”) Wiktionary about yes says From Middle English yes, yis, from Old English ġēse, ġīse, ġȳse, ġīese (“yes, of course, so be it”), equivalent to ġēa (“yes", "so”) + sī(e) (“may it be”), from Proto-Indo-European yē (“already”). Compare yea. So "yes", seeming so simple, was once a compound word.