Where does “drei” come from?
drei (German Low German) comes from Old Saxon thrīe, from Proto-West Germanic þrīʀ, from Proto-Germanic þrīz, from Proto-Indo-European *tréyes.
drei (German Low German): three
Ancestry of “drei”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old Saxon | thrīe | — |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | þrīʀ | three |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | þrīz | three |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | *tréyes | — |