forerun

n. 1. A messenger sent before to give notice of the approach of others; a harbinger; a sign foreshowing something; a prognostic; as, the forerunner of a fever. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whither the forerunner in for us entered, even Jesus. Heb. vi. 20. [ 1913 Webster ]

My elder brothers, my forerunners, came. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A predecessor; an ancestor. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Naut.) A piece of rag terminating the log line. [ 1913 Webster ]