Where does “Heck” come from?

Heck (German) comes from Middle Low German heck, from Old Saxon heggi, from Proto-West Germanic haggju, from Proto-Germanic hagjō, from Proto-Indo-European kagʰyóm, from Proto-Indo-European -yós — Creates adjectives from noun or verb stems.

Heck (German): stern; tail; back

Definitions

  1. stern; tail; back

Ancestry of “Heck”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Low Germanheckwooden fencing
2Old Saxonheggi—
3Proto-West Germanichaggjuhedge
4Proto-Germanichagjōhedge
5Proto-Indo-Europeankagʰyómenclosure, hedge
6Proto-Indo-European-yósCreates adjectives from noun or verb stems
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yós →Every word from Proto-Indo-European kagʰyóm →Every word from Proto-Germanic hagjō →