Where does “Wehmutter” come from?

Wehmutter (German) comes from German weh, from Middle High German wē, from Old High German wē, from Proto-West Germanic wai, from Proto-Germanic wai, from Proto-Indo-European wai — oh!; woe!.

Wehmutter (German): midwife

Definitions

  1. midwife

Ancestry of “Wehmutter”, step by step

Wehmutter traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German weh

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanwehsore, painful; alas! woe!
2Middle High Germanwē—
3Old High Germanwēwoe
4Proto-West Germanicwaiwoe!, alas!
5Proto-Germanicwaiwoe! alas!
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwaioh!; woe!

via German mutter

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanmuttermother
2Middle High Germanmuotermother
3Old High Germanmuotermother
4Old Frisianmōder—
5Proto-Germanicmōdērmother
6Proto-Indo-Europeanméh₂tērmother
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wai →Every word from Proto-Germanic wai →Every word from Proto-West Germanic wai →