1. Etymological Dictionaries:
* Online Etymology Dictionary: This comprehensive online resource provides detailed histories of words, tracing their origins and evolution.
* Oxford English Dictionary (OED): The OED is a monumental work that provides exhaustive etymological information on a vast number of words.
* Merriam-Webster Dictionary: While not solely focused on etymology, Merriam-Webster offers good basic etymological information for many words.
2. Historical Text Collections:
* Corpus of Historical American English (COHA): This massive collection of digitized texts allows you to trace the usage of a word over time, revealing its changing meanings and contexts.
* Google Books Ngram Viewer: A tool for exploring the frequency of words in digitized books over time, offering insights into word usage and evolution.
* Project Gutenberg: A vast collection of free eBooks, including historical texts, where you can find instances of your word in different historical periods.
3. Language History Texts:
* Books and articles on the history of English: These resources provide a broader understanding of the historical and cultural context surrounding language change, which can be useful in interpreting word evolution.
* Texts on specific language families: For example, if you are studying a word of Latin origin, researching the history of Latin can provide valuable context.
4. Other Relevant Resources:
* Online databases of historical sources: Many libraries and research institutions offer online databases containing historical documents, which might include relevant instances of the word you are researching.
* Academic journals: Searching academic journals for articles on the history of language, specific languages, or specific words can reveal in-depth research on the topic.
* Linguistics textbooks: Basic linguistics textbooks can provide a foundation in the principles of language change, which can be helpful in understanding etymological processes.
By combining these resources, a student can gain a comprehensive understanding of the etymological development of a word, tracing its origins, identifying its changing meanings, and understanding the factors that contributed to its evolution.