Where does “Tannenbaum” come from?

Tannenbaum (German) comes from German tanne, from Middle High German tanne, from Old High German tanna, from Proto-West Germanic *dannā, from Proto-Germanic dannǭ, from Proto-Indo-European dʰonu — fir.

Tannenbaum (German): fir tree; Christmas tree

Definitions

  1. fir tree; Christmas tree

Ancestry of “Tannenbaum”, step by step

Tannenbaum traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German tanne

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germantannefir (genus Abies)
2Middle High Germantanne—
3Old High Germantannafir wood
4Proto-West Germanic*dannāpine, fir
5Proto-Germanicdannǭpine, fir
6Proto-Indo-Europeandʰonufir

via German baum

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanbaumtree
2Middle High Germanboumtree
3Old High Germanboumtree, beam
4Proto-West Germanicbaumtree; beam
5Proto-GermanicbaumazAlternative form of *bagmaz; tree, beam, balk;...
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰew-to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰonu →Every word from Proto-Germanic dannǭ →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *dannā →