Where does “whiskey” come from?
Whiskey comes from Irish uisce beatha, from Irish uisce, from Old Irish uisce, from Proto-Celtic udenskyos, from Proto-Indo-European wódr̥, derived from the root wed-.
whiskey (English): A liquor distilled from the fermented mash of...
Definitions
- A liquor distilled from the fermented mash of...
Ancestry of “whiskey”, step by step
whiskey traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English ey
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | ey | An egg; An island; 1975 August 23, Black, Judie,... |
| 2 | English | they | A group of people, animals, plants, or objects... |
| 3 | English | the'e | Pronunciation spelling of there |
| 4 | English | there | In a place or location at some distance from the... |
| 5 | Old English | þær | there |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | þār | there |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | þar | there, in that place |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | tar- | there |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | to- | it; that; the, that |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | só | this; that |
via English usque
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | usque | whisky |
| 2 | English | usquebaugh | Whisky |
| 3 | Irish | uisce beatha | whiskey |
| 4 | Medieval Latin | aqua vitae | distilled alcohol; spirits |
| 5 | Latin | vita | life; living, support, subsistence; a way of life |
| 6 | Latin | vivo | I live; I am alive, I survive; I reside in |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | gʷīwō | live, be alive |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷíh₃weti | to live, to be alive |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷih₃wós | alive, living |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷeih₃w- | to live |