Where does “Bank” come from?
Bank (German) comes from Old High German bank, from Proto-West Germanic banki, from Proto-Germanic bankiz, from Proto-Indo-European bʰeg- — to break.
Bank (German): bench which people sit on; pew
Definitions
- bench which people sit on; pew
Ancestry of “Bank”, step by step
Bank traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Old High German bank
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old High German | bank | bench |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | banki | bench |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | bankiz | a raised surface; bulge; hillock; slope; bench |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰeg- | to break |
via Italian banca
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | banca | bank; third-person singular present indicative of... |
| 2 | Lombardic | bank | bench, counter |
via Old High German banc
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old High German | banc | counter, bench |