Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “flehen” come from?

flehen (German) comes from Middle High German vlēhen, from Old High German flēhan, from Proto-West Germanic flaihijan, from Proto-West Germanic -jan, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé-, from Chichewa iye — he, she.

flehen (German): to entreat, to beg

Definitions

  1. to entreat, to beg

Ancestry of “flehen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanvlēhen—
2Old High Germanflēhan—
3Proto-West Germanicflaihijanto be sly, be sneaky; to coax, flatter
4Proto-West Germanic-janCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
5Proto-Germanic-janąDerives denominatives from nouns and factitives...
6Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
7Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
8Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “flehen”

  • Flehen
  • flehentlich
Every word from Chichewa iye →