Where does “snowrabbit” come from?

snowrabbit (English) comes from English snow, from Middle English snow, from Old English snāw, from Proto-West Germanic snaiw, from Proto-Germanic snaiwaz, from Proto-Indo-European snóygʷʰos, from Proto-Indo-European sneygʷʰ- — to snow.

snowrabbit (English): A rabbit that inhabits regions frequently covered with snow

Definitions

  1. A rabbit that inhabits regions frequently covered with snow

Ancestry of “snowrabbit”, step by step

snowrabbit traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English snow

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishsnowThe frozen, crystalline state of water that falls...
2Middle Englishsnowsnow; snow-white; The temperature where snow...
3Old Englishsnāwsnow
4Proto-West Germanicsnaiwsnow
5Proto-Germanicsnaiwazsnow
6Proto-Indo-Europeansnóygʷʰossnow
7Proto-Indo-Europeansneygʷʰ-to snow

via English rabbit

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishrabbitA mammal of the family Leporidae, with long ears,...
2Middle Englishrabet
3Middle Frenchrabotte
4Dutchrobbe
5Englishrobert
6Anglo-NormanRobert
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sneygʷʰ-