Where does “Stern” come from?
Stern (English) comes from English tern, from Middle English terne, from Old French terne, from Latin ternas, from Latin terni, from Latin ter, from Latin terr, from Old Latin tris.
Stern (English): Having a hardness and severity of nature or manner
Definitions
- Having a hardness and severity of nature or manner
Ancestry of “Stern”, step by step
Stern traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English tern
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | tern | Any of various sea birds of the family Sternidae... |
| 2 | Middle English | terne | — |
| 3 | Old French | terne | dull, dim |
| 4 | Latin | ternas | accusative feminine plural of terni |
| 5 | Latin | terni | three each; three at a time |
| 6 | Latin | ter | thrice |
| 7 | Latin | terr | — |
| 8 | Old Latin | tris | — |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | trēs | three |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | *tréyes | — |
via German stern
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | stern | a star; a small luminous dot that can be seen on the night sky |
| 2 | Middle High German | stërne | star |
| 3 | Old High German | sterno | star |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | sternō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | sternô | star |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂stḗr | star |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂eHs- | to be/become dry; to burn, to glow; hearth |