Where does “Feuerwehrfrau” come from?
Feuerwehrfrau (German) comes from German Feuerwehr, from German Wehr, from Middle High German were, from Old High German werī, from Proto-Germanic warīniz, from Proto-Germanic -īniz, from Proto-Germanic -niz, from Proto-Indo-European -nis.
Feuerwehrfrau (German): firewoman, firefighter
Ancestry of “Feuerwehrfrau”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | Feuerwehr | fire brigade; fire department |
| 2 | German | Wehr | resistance; defence; also in the sense of... |
| 3 | Middle High German | were | — |
| 4 | Old High German | werī | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | warīniz | warding off, defense |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -īniz | Forms abstract nouns from weak class 1 verbs |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -niz | Forms abstract nouns from verbal roots and stems |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -nis | — |