Where does “Bernhard” come from?
Bernhard (English) comes from German Bernhard, from Old High German Bernhart, from Old High German hart, from Proto-West Germanic hard(ī), from Proto-Germanic harduz, from Proto-Indo-European kert-, from Proto-Turkic *keŕ- — to travel, tour.
Ancestry of “Bernhard”, step by step
Bernhard traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German Bernhard
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Bernhard | Bernard |
| 2 | Old High German | Bernhart | — |
| 3 | Old High German | hart | hard |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hard(ī) | hard |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | harduz | hard; brave |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | kert- | times; to weave, twist together; time |
| 7 | Proto-Turkic | *keŕ- | to travel, tour |
via Proto-Germanic bernuz
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-Germanic | bernuz | bear |