Where does “hamster” come from?

hamster (German) comes from Middle High German hamster, from Old High German hamustro, from Old East Slavic хомѣсторъ, from Proto-Slavic *xoměstorъ — hamster.

hamster (German): singular imperative of hamstern

Definitions

  1. singular imperative of hamstern

Ancestry of “hamster”, step by step

hamster traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle High German hamster

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanhamsterhamster
2Old High Germanhamustrohamster
3Old East Slavicхомѣсторъhamster
4Proto-Slavic*xoměstorъhamster

via Old High German hamastra

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanhamastra

Words derived from “hamster

Every word from Proto-Slavic *xoměstorъ
hamster — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer