Where does “Amherst” come from?
Amherst (English) comes from Old English elm, from Proto-West Germanic *elm, from Proto-Germanic elmaz, from Persian الماس, from Ancient Greek ἀδάμας, from Ancient Greek ἀ-, from Proto-Hellenic hə-, from Proto-Indo-European sm̥- — together, one.
Amherst (English): Ellipsis of Lady Amherst's pheasant
Definitions
- Ellipsis of Lady Amherst's pheasant
Ancestry of “Amherst”, step by step
Amherst traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Old English elm
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old English | elm | elm tree |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | *elm | elm tree |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | elmaz | elm tree; wood from an elm tree |
| 4 | Persian | الماس | diamond |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ἀδάμας | adamant, the hardest metal; a hard metal... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | ἀ- | The alpha privativum, used to make words that... |
| 7 | Proto-Hellenic | hə- | same; together |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | sm̥- | one; with, together |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | sem- | together, one |
via Old English hyrst
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old English | hyrst | hurst, hillock, eminence, height, wood, wooded... |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | hursti | thicket, wood, grove; nest |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | hurstiz | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | kʷr̥st-i-s | — |
via Old Norse almr
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Norse | almr | elm |