From Middle English churl, cherl, cheorl, from Old English ċeorl ("a freeman of the lowest class, a churl, a countryman, husbandman, a hero, husband, man, male person, a man of inferior class, peasant, rustic, commoner, layman"), from Proto-Germanic *karilaz ("man, elder"), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵerh₂- ("grown-up, old, mature"). Cognate with Scots churl ("a churl, a rustic"), North Frisian tzierl, tjierl, tsjerl, West Frisian tsjirl ("fellow, churl"), Dutch kerel ("man, churl, fellow"), Low German kerl, kerel, kirl, German Kerl ("man, fellow"), Swedish karl ("man, fellow"), Icelandic karl ("a male"), Polish karzeł ("a small man").
The deprecating sense developed by 1300. The variant carl, carle (without a derogatory connotation) is a loan from the Old Norse cognate.
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