Where does “Rainer” come from?
Rainer (English) comes from English rain, from Middle English reyn, from Old English reġn, from Proto-West Germanic regn, from Proto-Germanic regną, from Proto-Indo-European Hreǵ- — to flow.
Ancestry of “Rainer”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | rain | Condensed water falling from a cloud; Any matter... |
| 2 | Middle English | reyn | — |
| 3 | Old English | reġn | rain |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | regn | rain |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | regną | rain |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | Hreǵ- | to flow |