Where does “Butterblümchen” come from?
Butterblümchen (German) comes from German Butterblume, from German butter, from Middle High German buter, from Old High German butira, from Proto-West Germanic buterā, from Latin būtȳrum, from Ancient Greek βούτυρον, from Ancient Greek τυρός — to swell; to crowd; to be strong.
Ancestry of “Butterblümchen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Butterblume | buttercup |
| 2 | German | butter | inflection of buttern: ## first-person singular... |
| 3 | Middle High German | buter | butter |
| 4 | Old High German | butira | butter |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | buterā | butter |
| 6 | Latin | būtȳrum | butter |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | βούτυρον | butter |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | τυρός | cheese |
| 9 | Proto-Hellenic | tūrós | cheese |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | tuh₂-ró-s | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | tewh₂- | to swell; to crowd; to be strong |