Where does “Hauptstadt” come from?

Hauptstadt (German) comes from German Stadt, from Middle High German stat, from Old High German stat, from Proto-West Germanic stadi, from Proto-Germanic stadiz, from Proto-Indo-European stéh₂tis, from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂-.

Hauptstadt (German): capital

Definitions

  1. capital

Ancestry of “Hauptstadt”, step by step

Hauptstadt traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German Stadt

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanStadtcity; town; city center
2Middle High Germanstatbank, shore
3Old High GermanstatA city; a town; A site; a place; a spot
4Proto-West Germanicstadiplace
5Proto-Germanicstadizplace, location
6Proto-Indo-Europeanstéh₂tisstanding, position
7Proto-Indo-European*steh₂-—

via Middle High German houbetstat

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanhoubetstat—
2Old High Germanhoubitstat—

Words derived from “Hauptstadt”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European stéh₂tis →Every word from Proto-Germanic stadiz →