Where does “treebeard” come from?

Treebeard is a compound of English tree (from Middle English trow, tre, from Proto-Germanic trewwō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰardʰeh₂ or dóru meaning wood) and beard.

treebeard (English): A pendulous branching lichen, "Usnea barbata",...

Definitions

  1. A pendulous branching lichen, "Usnea barbata",...

Ancestry of “treebeard”, step by step

treebeard traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English Beard

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishBeardA place name
2Middle Englishberdbeard
3Old Englishbeardbeard
4Proto-West Germanicbardbeard
5Proto-Germanicbardazbeard
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰardʰéh₂beard

via English tree

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishtreeA perennial woody plant, not exactly defined, but...
2Middle EnglishtreA tree or a plant that resembles one
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰardʰéh₂ →