Where does “Nachtwächter” come from?

Nachtwächter (German) comes from German Nacht, from Middle High German nacht, from Old High German naht, from Proto-West Germanic naht, from Proto-Germanic nahts, from Proto-Indo-European nókʷts, from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- — bare, naked.

Nachtwächter (German): night watchman

Definitions

  1. night watchman

Ancestry of “Nachtwächter”, step by step

Nachtwächter traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German Nacht

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanNachtnight; darkness
2Middle High Germannacht—
3Old High Germannahtnight
4Proto-West Germanicnahtnight
5Proto-Germanicnahtsnight
6Proto-Indo-Europeannókʷtsnight
7Proto-Indo-Europeannegʷ-bare, naked

via German Wächter

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanWächterguard
2Middle High Germanwahter—
3Old High Germanwahtāriwatchman
4Proto-Germanicwahtwōwatch, vigil
5Proto-Germanicwakanąto wake, be awake, arise
6Proto-Indo-Europeanweǵ-lively, awake; strong

Words derived from “Nachtwächter”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European nókʷts →Every word from Proto-Germanic nahts →