Where does “Germanic” come from?
Germanic derives from Latin germanicus, formed from Latin -icus, a suffix ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -kos.
Germanic (English): Relating to the Germanic peoples; Relating to the...
Definitions
- Relating to the Germanic peoples; Relating to the...
Ancestry of “Germanic”, step by step
Germanic traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English germanium
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | germanium | A nonmetallic chemical element with an atomic... |
| 2 | German | Germanium | germanium |
| 3 | Latin | Germānia | Germany in its various senses, including |
| 4 | Latin | Germānī | Native people or tribes of ancient Germania, mentioned by Julius Caesar and Tacitus |
| 5 | Latin | Germānus | — |
| 6 | Latin | germen | shoot, sprout, bud; germ, seed, origin; embryo,... |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | genamen | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵénh₁mn̥ | offspring, seed |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |
via Latin Germanicus
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | Germanicus | Germanic; German |