Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Western” come from?

Western comes from Old English westerne, derived from Proto-Germanic westrōnijaz, which is built from the Proto-Germanic suffix -ōnijaz added to a root from Proto-Indo-European wek(ʷ)speros, meaning evening or the direction of sunset.

Western (English): Of, situated in, or related to the West; Of or...

Definitions

  1. Of, situated in, or related to the West; Of or...

Ancestry of “Western”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishwesternewestern
2Old Englishwesternewestern
3Proto-Germanicwestrōnijazwestern
4Proto-Germanicwestrazwest, western
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwek(ʷ)sperosevening
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwe-—

Words derived from “Western”

  • non-Western
  • вестерн
  • вестерн
  • vestern
Every word from Proto-Indo-European we- →