Where does “fernowl” come from?

fernowl (English) comes from English fern, from Middle English fern, from Old English fearn, from Proto-West Germanic farn, from Proto-Indo-European pornóm, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.

fernowl (English): A bird, the nightjar

Definitions

  1. A bird, the nightjar

Ancestry of “fernowl”, step by step

fernowl traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English fern

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfernAny of a group of some twenty thousand species of...
2Middle Englishfernfern plant of the division
3Old Englishfearnfern
4Proto-West Germanicfarnfern
5Proto-Indo-Europeanpornómfeather, wing; fern, leaf
6Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

via English owl

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishowlAny of various birds of prey of the order...
2Middle Englishouleowl; An insult, especially applied to the Devil;...
3Old Englishūleowl
4Proto-West Germanic*uwwulāowl
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós