Where does “-lich” come from?

-lich (German) comes from Middle High German -lich, from Old High German -līh, from Proto-Germanic *-līk.

-lich (German): an adjectival suffix; an adverbial suffix

Definitions

  1. an adjectival suffix; an adverbial suffix

Ancestry of “-lich”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High German-lich-ly
2Old High German-līh—
3Proto-Germanic*-līk—

Words derived from “-lich”

Every word from Proto-Germanic *-līk →Every word from Middle High German -lich →Every word from Old High German -līh →