Where does “handwheel” come from?

handwheel (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.

handwheel (English): Any wheel worked by hand, whether used to allow...

Definitions

  1. Any wheel worked by hand, whether used to allow...

Ancestry of “handwheel”, step by step

handwheel 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 wheel

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwheelA circular device capable of rotating on its...
2Middle EnglishwhelA wheel circular device for motion
3Old Englishhwēolwheel
4Proto-Germanichweulōnominative/vocative/accusative plural of *hwehwlą
5Proto-Indo-Europeankʷékʷléh₂
6Proto-Indo-Europeankʷékʷloswheel; circle
7Proto-Indo-Europeankʷel-to turn
Every word from Proto-Germanic handuz
handwheel — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer