Old English; earliest use found in The Epinal Glossary. Cognate with Middle Dutch parc, perc, paerc, parric, perric enclosed place, park, Middle Low German perk enclosure, Old High German pfarrih, pferrih pen, enclosure, hurdle (Middle High German pherrich, pferrich, pferich, pherch means of enclosure, pen, German Pferch pen, fold (for sheep, etc.); goes to pferchen to fold, pen (an animal)), further etymology uncertain and disputed; perhaps from post-classical Latin parricus, although if so par and par present difficulties, unless they are of a completely different origin (it seems unlikely that they show a borrowing from Latin *parra). In English the ending probably shows assimilation to the suffix -ock.