Where does “Wilke” come from?
Wilke is an English surname derived from the personal name Wilkin, itself a diminutive of Will, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wĺ̥kʷos meaning wolf.
Ancestry of “Wilke”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | Wilk | — |
| 2 | English | Wilkin | — |
| 3 | Middle English | Wilkin | — |
| 4 | Middle English | Will | — |
| 5 | Middle English | William | — |
| 6 | Anglo-Norman | Willame | — |
| 7 | Old High German | Willahelm | William |
| 8 | Old High German | helm | helmet |
| 9 | Proto-West Germanic | helm | helmet |
| 10 | Proto-Germanic | helmaz | helmet |
| 11 | Proto-Germanic | halmaz | halm; stem; stalk; straw; hay |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱolh₂mos | stalk |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱelh₂- | to pierce, strike; to stick; prick; stab |