Where does “Schattenspiel” come from?

Schattenspiel (German) comes from German Schatten, from Middle High German schate, from Old High German scato, from Proto-West Germanic skadu, from Proto-Germanic skaduz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)ḱeh₃- — darkness, shadow.

Schattenspiel (German): shadow play

Definitions

  1. shadow play

Ancestry of “Schattenspiel”, step by step

Schattenspiel traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German Schatten

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanSchattenshade, shadow
2Middle High Germanschate—
3Old High Germanscatoshade, shadow
4Proto-West Germanicskadushadow
5Proto-Germanicskaduza shadow
6Proto-Indo-European(s)ḱeh₃-darkness, shadow

via German spiel

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanspiela game instance or way of playing
2Middle High Germanspil—
3Old High Germanspil—
4Proto-West Germanicspildance; game, exercise
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)ḱeh₃- →Every word from Proto-Germanic skaduz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic skadu →