Where does “Schmiergeld” come from?
Schmiergeld (German) comes from German schmieren, from Middle High German smirn, from Middle High German smirwen, from Old High German smirwen, from Proto-West Germanic *smirwijan, from Proto-Germanic smirwijaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti — he, she.
Schmiergeld (German): lubrication payment, bribe
Definitions
- lubrication payment, bribe
Ancestry of “Schmiergeld”, step by step
Schmiergeld traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German schmieren
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | schmieren | to smear; to butter; to grease, oil, lubricate |
| 2 | Middle High German | smirn | — |
| 3 | Middle High German | smirwen | — |
| 4 | Old High German | smirwen | — |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *smirwijan | to smear |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | smirwijaną | to smear, anoint |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 10 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |