Where does “Holywell” come from?
Holywell (English) comes from English Holy, from Middle English holi, from Old English hāliġ, from Proto-West Germanic hailag, from Proto-Germanic hailagaz, from Proto-Germanic hailaz, from Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilos — healthy.
Holywell (English): OS grid ref SJ1875
Definitions
- OS grid ref SJ1875
Ancestry of “Holywell”, step by step
Holywell traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English Holy
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Holy | Alternative letter-case form of holy "used when... |
| 2 | Middle English | holi | Alternative form of holy |
| 3 | Old English | hāliġ | holy |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hailag | holy, sacred |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hailagaz | holy, sacred |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hailaz | whole, unbroken, intact; entire, complete; hale,... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | *kéh₂ilos | healthy |
via English well
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | well | Accurately, competently, satisfactorily;... |
| 2 | Middle English | wellen | to boil, to bubble |
| 3 | Old English | weallan | to well |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | wallaną | to well up, spring out, bubble forth |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | wēlH- | to roll, to undulate |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | welH- | to turn, to wind |
via English Holly
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Holly | Any of various shrubs or (mostly) small trees, of the genus Ilex, either evergreen or deciduous, used as decoration especially at Christmas |
| 2 | Middle English | holly | Alternative form of holy |
| 3 | Old English | holeġn | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hulis | holly |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | kel- | to hit; beat; to pierce, to stab; goblet |