Where does “biltong” come from?
biltong (Dutch) comes from Afrikaans biltong, from Afrikaans tong, from Dutch tong, from Middle Dutch tonge, from Old Dutch tunga, from Proto-West Germanic tungā, from Proto-Germanic tungǭ, from Proto-Indo-European dn̥ǵʰwéh₂s — tongue.
biltong (Dutch): biltong
Ancestry of “biltong”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Afrikaans | biltong | biltong |
| 2 | Afrikaans | tong | tongue |
| 3 | Dutch | tong | tongue; A kind of flatfish, the common sole,... |
| 4 | Middle Dutch | tonge | tongue; speech, language |
| 5 | Old Dutch | tunga | tongue |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | tungā | tongue; speech, language |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | tungǭ | tongue; speech, language |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | dn̥ǵʰwéh₂s | tongue |