Where does “Schauspiel” come from?

Schauspiel (German) comes from German spiel, from Middle High German spil, from Old High German spil, from Proto-West Germanic spil — dance; game, exercise.

Schauspiel (German): play theatrical performance, drama

Definitions

  1. play theatrical performance, drama

Ancestry of “Schauspiel”, step by step

Schauspiel traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German spiel

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanspiela game instance or way of playing
2Middle High Germanspil—
3Old High Germanspil—
4Proto-West Germanicspildance; game, exercise

via German Schau

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanSchaushow
2Middle High Germanschouwe—

Words derived from “Schauspiel”

Every word from Proto-West Germanic spil →Every word from Old High German spil →Every word from Middle High German spil →