Where does “Specht” come from?

Specht (German) comes from Middle High German specht, from Old High German speht, from Proto-West Germanic spiht, from Proto-Germanic spihtaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)peyk- — name of a bird; woodpecker; magpie.

Specht (German): picid; woodpecker

Definitions

  1. picid; woodpecker

Ancestry of “Specht”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanspecht
2Old High Germanspeht
3Proto-West Germanicspihtwoodpecker
4Proto-Germanicspihtazwoodpecker
5Proto-Indo-European(s)peyk-name of a bird; woodpecker; magpie
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)peyk-Every word from Proto-Germanic spihtazEvery word from Proto-West Germanic spiht