Where does “fingersmith” come from?

fingersmith (English) comes from English finger, from German Finger, from Middle High German vinger, from Old High German fingar, from Proto-West Germanic fingr, from Proto-Germanic fingraz, from Proto-Indo-European penkʷrós.

fingersmith (English): pickpocket

Definitions

  1. pickpocket

Ancestry of “fingersmith”, step by step

fingersmith traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English finger

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfingerA slender jointed extremity of the human hand, (often) exclusive of the thumb, and the corresponding part, irrespective of including a thumb, in many other animals
2GermanFingerfinger
3Middle High Germanvingerfinger
4Old High Germanfingarfinger
5Proto-West Germanicfingrfinger
6Proto-Germanicfingrazfinger
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpenkʷrós

via English Smith

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishSmith(the most common in Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand)
2Middle EnglishsmiþAlternative form of smyth
3Middle EnglishsmythA blacksmith; one who works with iron; A...
4Old Englishsmiþsmith
5Proto-West Germanic*smiþcraftsman, smith
6Proto-Germanicsmiþazcraftsman, smith
7Proto-Indo-Europeansmēy-
Every word from Proto-Indo-European penkʷrósEvery word from Proto-Germanic fingrazEvery word from Proto-West Germanic fingr