Where does “meadowhawk” come from?

meadowhawk (English) comes from English hawk, from English hawker, from Middle Low German hȫker, from Old High German huchan, from Proto-Germanic *hūkan-, from Proto-Germanic *hūkkan-, from Proto-Germanic *huk(k)ōn-, from Proto-Indo-European *kuk-néh₂ — flare up, glow; white; to glow, burn, lighten.

meadowhawk (English): Any of several dragonflies, of the genus...

Definitions

  1. Any of several dragonflies, of the genus...

Ancestry of “meadowhawk”, step by step

meadowhawk traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English hawk

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishhawkA diurnal predatory bird of the family...
2EnglishhawkerA peddler, huckster, who travels about to sell...
3Middle Low Germanhȫkerpeddler
4Old High Germanhuchan
5Proto-Germanic*hūkan-
6Proto-Germanic*hūkkan-
7Proto-Germanic*huk(k)ōn-
8Proto-Indo-European*kuk-néh₂
9Proto-Indo-Europeanḱewk-flare up, glow; white; to glow, burn, lighten

via English meadow

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishmeadowA field or pasture; a piece of land covered or...
2Middle Englishmedowe
3Old Englishmǣdwe
4Proto-Germanicmēdwōmeadow
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂meh₁-to mow, reap
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱewk-