Where is the origin of the word smith?

Answer 1

The word smith comes directly from Old Frisian and is closely related to words in old Norse, old Danish and early Germanic (all variants of smit, smid, smitte, etc.) It originally meant a skilled worker. Later it meant specifically anyone who worked with metal. Smith emerged as a surname before the 10th century. It seems likely it is connected to the word "smite" in some way but the relationship is not immediately clear, if any. Note that recent usage of smith in combinations such as "wordsmith" are very consistent with the earliest meanings of the term.