Where does “dum” come from?

dum (Danish) comes from German dumm, from Middle High German tump, from Old High German tumb, from Proto-West Germanic dumb, from Proto-Germanic dumbaz, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewbʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- — smoke; mist, haze.

dum (Danish): stupid, dense, dumb, thick, dim; foolish, silly,...

Definitions

  1. stupid, dense, dumb, thick, dim; foolish, silly,...

Ancestry of “dum”, step by step

dum traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German dumm

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germandummdumb, stupid
2Middle High Germantump—
3Old High Germantumbdumb; stupid
4Proto-West Germanicdumbdumb, mute
5Proto-Germanicdumbazdumb, mute, unable to speak
6Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewbʰ-deep
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

via Old Norse dumbr

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsedumbrdumb

Words derived from “dum”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewbʰ- →Every word from Proto-Germanic dumbaz →