Words that come from Proto-Germanic “hwī”

53 words across 21 languages descend from Proto-Germanic hwī — including why, wai, whyever, whyn't, whyness, somewhy, hvi, hví.

See the etymology of hwī itself →

English (10)

Icelandic (8)

German (8)

Gothic (4)

Cimbrian (3)

Old English (2)

Norwegian Bokmål (2)

Norwegian Nynorsk (2)

Old Saxon (2)

Danish (1)

Faroese (1)

Elfdalian (1)

Yiddish (1)

Old Norse (1)

Proto-Germanic (1)

Pennsylvania German (1)

Old Swedish (1)

Middle English (1)

Middle High German (1)

Antigua and Barbuda Creole English (1)

Jamaican Creole (1)