Where does “halbmast” come from?
halbmast (German) comes from German halb, from Middle High German halp, from Old High German halb, from Proto-West Germanic halb, from Proto-Germanic halbaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)kelH-, from Proto-Indo-European (s)kel- — to bend, crook; bent, crooked; leg, heel, knee,...
halbmast (German): half-mast
Definitions
- half-mast
Ancestry of “halbmast”, step by step
halbmast traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via German halb
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | halb | half, halfway; a half-hour before, thirty minutes... |
| 2 | Middle High German | halp | — |
| 3 | Old High German | halb | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | halb | half |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | halbaz | half |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)kelH- | to cut; to split, to separate |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)kel- | to bend, crook; bent, crooked; leg, heel, knee,... |
via German mast
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | German | mast | mast of a ship |
| 2 | Middle High German | mast | — |
| 3 | Old High German | mast | fodder, feeding, fattening; fattening |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *mast | mast |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | mastaz | rod, pole, perch; bar, plank; mast |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | mazdos | pole, mast; plank, board, flooring; perch, pole,... |