AE \[AE]\ or Ae \Ae\ A diphthong in the Latin language; used also by the Saxon writers. It answers to the Gr. ai. The Anglo-Saxon short [ae] was generally replaced by a, the long [=ae] by e or ee. In derivatives from Latin words with ae, it is mostly superseded by e. For most words found with this initial combination, the reader will therefore search under the letter E.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)