Where does “starling” come from?
Starling derives from Middle English starling, from Old English starlinc, a diminutive formation combining Old English star- (from Proto-Germanic star-) with the diminutive suffix -ling, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European sterh₁-.
starling (English): A family, Sturnidae, of passerine birds; A...
Definitions
- A family, Sturnidae, of passerine birds; A...
Ancestry of “starling”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | starling | — |
| 2 | Old English | starlinc | — |
| 3 | Old English | -ling | adverbial suffix denoting direction, state or... |
| 4 | Old English | lang | long; lasting; old, ancient; advanced |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | lang | long |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | langaz | long |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dlongʰos | long |
Words derived from “starling”