Where does “which” come from?
Which derives from Middle English which, Old English hwilc, Proto-Germanic hwilīkaz and hwaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European kʷos and līg-, though the precise sense development remains unclear.
which (English): What, of those mentioned or implied; The one or...
Definitions
- What, of those mentioned or implied; The one or...
Ancestry of “which”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | which | which |
| 2 | Old English | hwelċ | which |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | hwilīkaz | what kind of, what sort of |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | hwaz | who, what; whose; whom |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | kʷos | See *kʷis |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | kʷ- | The primary interrogative root |
Words derived from “which”