Where does “frillneck” come from?

frillneck (English) comes from English neck, from Middle English nekke, from Old English hnecca, from Proto-West Germanic *hnakkō, from Proto-Germanic hnakkô, from Proto-Indo-European knog-, from Proto-Indo-European ken- — to arise, begin.

frillneck (English): The frilled lizard

Definitions

  1. The frilled lizard

Ancestry of “frillneck”, step by step

frillneck traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English neck

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishneckThe part of the body connecting the head and the...
2Middle Englishnekkeneck
3Old Englishhneccaback of the neck; back of the head; neck
4Proto-West Germanic*hnakkōnape
5Proto-Germanichnakkôthe back of the neck; nape
6Proto-Indo-Europeanknog-back of the head, nape, neck
7Proto-Indo-Europeanken-to arise, begin

via English frill

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfrillA strip of pleated fabric or paper used as...
2Old Frenchfriller
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ken-Every word from Proto-Indo-European knog-Every word from Proto-Germanic hnakkô