Where does “handclap” come from?

handclap (English) comes from English Hand, from Middle English hond, from Old English hand, from Proto-West Germanic handu, from Swedish hand, from Old Swedish hand, from Old Norse hǫnd, from Proto-Germanic handuz — hand.

handclap (English): A single clap of the hands

Definitions

  1. A single clap of the hands

Ancestry of “handclap”, step by step

handclap traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Hand

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishHandThe part of the forelimb below the forearm or wrist in a human, and the corresponding part in many other animals
2Middle Englishhondhand; Alternative form of hound
3Old EnglishhandA hand
4Proto-West Germanichanduhand
5SwedishhandA hand; A hand; the set of cards held by a player
6Old SwedishhandA hand; A direction; A behalf
7Old Norsehǫndhand
8Proto-Germanichanduzhand

via English clap

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishclapThe act of striking the palms of the hands, or...
2Old Frenchclapoirbubo, inflammation from infection
3Old Frenchclapierbrothel
4Old Occitanclapierrabbit hutch
5Old Occitanclapheap of stones
6Medieval Latinclaperius
Every word from Proto-Germanic handuz