Where does “followspot” come from?

followspot (English) comes from English follow, from Middle English folwen, from Old English folġian, from Proto-West Germanic folgēn, from Proto-Germanic fulgāną, from Proto-Germanic fullaz, from Proto-Indo-European pl̥h₁nós, from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁- — to fill.

followspot (English): A spotlight that follows a performer as they move...

Definitions

  1. A spotlight that follows a performer as they move...

Ancestry of “followspot”, step by step

followspot traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English follow

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfollowTo go after; to pursue; to move behind in the...
2Middle Englishfolwento follow
3Old Englishfolġianto follow
4Proto-West Germanicfolgēnto follow
5Proto-Germanicfulgānąto follow
6Proto-Germanicfullazfull; the whole, the entire
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpl̥h₁nósfull
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpleh₁-to fill

via English spot

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishspotA round or irregular patch on the surface of a...
2English-yAdded to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives...
3Middle English-yDesignates an adjective, in many cases formed by...
4Old English-iġ-y, -ic
5Proto-West Germanic-gForms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a...
6Proto-Germanic-gaz-y
7Proto-Indo-European-ḱos-y, -ic
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pleh₁-Every word from Proto-Indo-European pl̥h₁nósEvery word from Proto-Germanic fullaz