Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Fischer” come from?

Fischer (English) comes from German Fischer, from Middle High German vischære, from Old High German fiscari, from Proto-Germanic fiskārijaz, from Proto-Germanic fiskaz, from Indo-European *peysk-.

Ancestry of “Fischer”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanFischerfisher, fisherman
2Middle High Germanvischære—
3Old High Germanfiscari—
4Proto-Germanicfiskārijazfisher
5Proto-Germanicfiskazfish
6Indo-European*peysk-—
Every word from Indo-European *peysk- →