Where does “selkie” come from?
selkie (English) comes from Scots selkie fowk, from Scots selkie, from Scots -ie, from Middle English -y, from Old English -iġ, from Proto-West Germanic -g, from Proto-Germanic -gaz, from Proto-Indo-European -ḱos — -y, -ic.
selkie (English): A seal which can magically transform into a human...
Definitions
- A seal which can magically transform into a human...
Ancestry of “selkie”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Scots | selkie fowk | selkie |
| 2 | Scots | selkie | Diminutive of selch; seal; grey seal, common seal |
| 3 | Scots | -ie | -y |
| 4 | Middle English | -y | Designates an adjective, in many cases formed by... |
| 5 | Old English | -iġ | -y, -ic |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -g | Forms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a... |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -gaz | -y |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ḱos | -y, -ic |