Where does “van” come from?

van (Dutch) comes from Middle Dutch van, from Old Dutch fān, from Old Saxon fāhan, from Proto-Germanic fanhaną, from Proto-Indo-European peh₂ḱ- — to join, to attach; agreement, settlement.

van (Dutch): of; by, of; from

Definitions

  1. of; by, of; from

Ancestry of “van”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Dutchvanof; from; out of
2Old Dutchfānoff, from
3Old Saxonfāhanto seize
4Proto-Germanicfanhanąto take, to seize; to capture, to catch
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpeh₂ḱ-to join, to attach; agreement, settlement

Words derived from “van”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European peh₂ḱ- →