Where does “Fernsprecher” come from?

Fernsprecher (German) comes from German fern, from Middle High German verren, from Old High German ferrana, from Old High German ferro, from Proto-West Germanic *ferrō, from Proto-Germanic ferrai, from Proto-Indo-European per-nóy, from Proto-Indo-European per- — passed , crossed.

Fernsprecher (German): telephone

Definitions

  1. telephone

Ancestry of “Fernsprecher”, step by step

Fernsprecher traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German fern

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanfernremote; far away
2Middle High Germanverren—
3Old High Germanferranafrom afar
4Old High Germanferroafar; skipper
5Proto-West Germanic*ferrō—
6Proto-Germanicferraifar, distant
7Proto-Indo-Europeanper-nóy—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

via German sprecher

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germansprechera speaker; one who speaks (male or unspecified sex); especially
2Middle High Germansprecher—
3Old High Germansprechāri—
4Old High Germansprecho—
5Proto-Germanicsprekôspeaker

Words derived from “Fernsprecher”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →Every word from Proto-Indo-European per- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European per-nóy →