Where does “Vernichtungskrieg” come from?
Vernichtungskrieg (German) comes from German Vernichtung, from German vernichten, from Middle High German vernihten, from Middle High German nihten, from Middle High German niht, from Old High German niwiht, from Old High German nio, from Old High German io — vital force, life, age, eternity; day, morning.
Vernichtungskrieg (German): war of annihilation war that aims at erasing the nationhood of the enemy, by utterly subduing or physically destroying them
Definitions
- war of annihilation war that aims at erasing the nationhood of the enemy, by utterly subduing or physically destroying them
Ancestry of “Vernichtungskrieg”, step by step
Vernichtungskrieg traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German Vernichtung
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | Vernichtung | destruction; annihilation, extinction |
| 2 | German | vernichten | to destroy; to ruin; to wreck; to annihilate; to... |
| 3 | Middle High German | vernihten | — |
| 4 | Middle High German | nihten | — |
| 5 | Middle High German | niht | not |
| 6 | Old High German | niwiht | — |
| 7 | Old High German | nio | never |
| 8 | Old High German | io | always |
| 9 | Proto-West Germanic | aiw | long time, age, eternity; law |
| 10 | Proto-Germanic | aiwaz | long time, age, eternity |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂eyu- | vitality; eternal; vital force, life, long life,... |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ey- | vital force, life, age, eternity; day, morning |
via German krieg
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | krieg | singular imperative of kriegen |
| 2 | Middle High German | kriec | exertion; enmity; opposition |
| 3 | Old High German | krig | stubbornness; defiance |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | krīg | strife; struggle; fight |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | krīganą | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷrihg(ʰ)-o- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷréh₂us | heavy |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -us | Forms adjectives from Caland system roots |