Where does “hornbeam” come from?
hornbeam (English) comes from English horn, from Middle English horn, from Old English horn, from Proto-West Germanic horn, from Proto-Germanic hurną, from Proto-Indo-European ḱer-, from Proto-Indo-European kr̥-, from Proto-Indo-European ker- — army.
hornbeam (English): A tree of the genus "Carpinus", having a smooth...
Definitions
- A tree of the genus "Carpinus", having a smooth...
Ancestry of “hornbeam”, step by step
hornbeam traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English horn
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | horn | A hard growth of keratin that protrudes from the... |
| 2 | Middle English | horn | A horn; A jutting or projecting extremity of... |
| 3 | Old English | horn | horn; gable |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | horn | horn |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hurną | horn |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |
via English beam
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | beam | Any large piece of timber or iron long in... |
| 2 | Middle English | beem | A usually wooden beam or pole |
| 3 | Old English | bēam | tree, cross, gallows, column, pillar, wood, beam,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | baum | tree; beam |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | baumaz | Alternative form of *bagmaz; tree, beam, balk;... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰew- | to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to... |
via Middle English hornbeme
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | hornbeme | — |