Where does “kwik” come from?
kwik (Afrikaans) comes from Dutch kwik, from Middle Dutch quic, from Old Dutch quic, from Proto-West Germanic *kwiku, from Proto-Germanic kwikwaz, from Proto-Indo-European gʷih₃wós, from Proto-Indo-European gʷeih₃w- — to live.
kwik (Afrikaans): mercury
Ancestry of “kwik”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Dutch | kwik | the element mercury; thermometer; Alternative... |
| 2 | Middle Dutch | quic | — |
| 3 | Old Dutch | quic | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *kwiku | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | kwikwaz | alive; lively, quick |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷih₃wós | alive, living |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷeih₃w- | to live |