Where does “ontzwavelen” come from?

ontzwavelen (Dutch) comes from Dutch zwavel, from Dutch zwalf, from Middle Dutch swalwe, from Old Dutch swalwa, from Proto-Germanic swalwǭ — swallow.

ontzwavelen (Dutch): to desulfurize, to remove sulfur

Definitions

  1. to desulfurize, to remove sulfur

Ancestry of “ontzwavelen”, step by step

ontzwavelen traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Dutch zwavel

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Dutchzwavelsulfur
2Dutchzwalf
3Middle Dutchswalwe
4Old Dutchswalwa
5Proto-Germanicswalwǭswallow

via Dutch ont- -en

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Dutchont- -enForms transitive verbs from nouns, meaning "to remove (noun) from, to rid of (noun), to de-(noun)"
Every word from Proto-Germanic swalwǭ