Where does “knowledge” come from?

Knowledge derives from Middle English knowleche, itself from Middle English knowen, which comes from Old English cnāwan, ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European ǵneh₃-.

knowledge (English): The fact of knowing about something; general...

Definitions

The fact of knowing about something; general...

Ancestry of “knowledge”, step by step

Step	Language	Word	Meaning
1	Middle English	knowleche	—
2	Middle English	knowen	to know
3	Old English	cnāwan	to know, perceive, recognise; to know, recognise,...
4	Proto-West Germanic	knāan	to recognise, to know
5	Proto-Germanic	knēaną	to know, recognise, understand
6	Proto-Indo-European	ǵneh₃-	to know

Words derived from “knowledge”

knowledgeable
foreknowledge
knowledgeably
unknowledgeable
nonknowledge
metaknowledge
counterknowledge
preknowledge
unknowledge
knowledgeless
knowledgeableness
antiknowledge
misknowledge
knowledgeful
interknowledge
unknowledgeably
book-knowledge
meta-knowledge
ethnoknowledge
knowledgelessness
beknowledge
self-knowledge
knowledgelike
knowleche

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵneh₃- →

knowledge — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer