Where does “silver” come from?

Silver comes from Old English seolfor, from Proto-Germanic silubrą, a word of uncertain origin and meaning.

silver (English): A lustrous, white, metallic element, atomic...

Definitions

  1. A lustrous, white, metallic element, atomic...

Ancestry of “silver”, step by step

silver traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English silver

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishsilversilver
2Old Englishseolforsilver
3Proto-West Germanic*silubrsilver
4Proto-Germanicsilubrąsilver

via Middle English sulver

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishsulverAlternative form of silver
2Old Englishseoloforsilver

via Middle English selver

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishselverAlternative form of silver

Words derived from “silver”

Every word from Proto-Germanic silubrą →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *silubr →Every word from Old English seolfor →