Where does “welldigger” come from?
welldigger (English) comes from English Digger, from Middle English dyggar, from Middle English -ere, from Old English -ere, from Proto-West Germanic -ārī, from Proto-Germanic -ārijaz, from Latin -ārius, from Proto-Italic *-āzios — Forms relational adjectives to nouns (and rarely numerals).
welldigger (English): A person who digs a well
Definitions
- A person who digs a well
Ancestry of “welldigger”, step by step
welldigger traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Digger
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Digger | A soldier from Australia or New Zealand; One of a... |
| 2 | Middle English | dyggar | digger |
| 3 | Middle English | -ere | er |
| 4 | Old English | -ere | masculine agent suffix, originally applied only... |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -ārī | -er |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -ārijaz | -er |
| 7 | Latin | -ārius | er |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | *-āzios | Forms relational adjectives to nouns (and rarely numerals) |
via English well
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | well | Accurately, competently, satisfactorily;... |
| 2 | Middle English | wellen | to boil, to bubble |
| 3 | Old English | weallan | to well |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | wallaną | to well up, spring out, bubble forth |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | wēlH- | to roll, to undulate |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | welH- | to turn, to wind |