Where does “on-” come from?
on- (Dutch) comes from Middle Dutch on-, from Old Dutch un-, from Proto-West Germanic un-, from Proto-Germanic un-, from Proto-Indo-European n̥-, from Proto-Indo-European ne — not.
on- (Dutch): un-, in-; on, without
Ancestry of “on-”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle Dutch | on- | un-, in- |
| 2 | Old Dutch | un- | — |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | un- | not, un- |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | un- | not, un- |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | n̥- | not, un- |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ne | not |