Where does “Lichtenstein” come from?
Lichtenstein comes from German Liechtenstein, from German Stein, from Old High German stein, from Proto-Germanic stainaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European steh₂-.
Ancestry of “Lichtenstein”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | Liechtenstein | — |
| 2 | German | Licht | light; eye of game, especially ground game |
| 3 | Middle High German | lieht | — |
| 4 | Old High German | lioht | — |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | leuht | light, bright; light |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | leuhtą | light |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | lewktom | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | lewk- | bright; to shine; to see |