Where does “Leute” come from?

Leute (German) comes from Middle High German liute, from Old High German liuti, from Proto-West Germanic *liud(i), from Proto-Germanic liudīz, from Proto-Indo-European h₁léwdʰis, from Proto-Indo-European h₁lewdʰ- — to grow; people.

Leute (German): people several individual persons, a group of people in general, esp. of one kind or another, folk (folks), peeps slang, guys (boys and/or girls)

Definitions

  1. people several individual persons, a group of people in general, esp. of one kind or another, folk (folks), peeps slang, guys (boys and/or girls)

Ancestry of “Leute”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanliute—
2Old High Germanliutipeople, subordinates
3Proto-West Germanic*liud(i)—
4Proto-Germanicliudīzman, person
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁léwdʰispeople
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁lewdʰ-to grow; people
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁lewdʰ- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁léwdʰis →Every word from Proto-Germanic liudīz →