Where does “Swing” come from?
Swing (English) comes from Middle English swyngen, from Old English swingan, from Proto-West Germanic *swingan, from Proto-Germanic swinganą, from Proto-Indo-European swenk- — to bend, swing, swivel.
Ancestry of “Swing”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | swyngen | — |
| 2 | Old English | swingan | to swinge, flog, beat, scourge; to give a blow... |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | *swingan | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | swinganą | to swing |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | swenk- | to bend, swing, swivel |