Where does “handball” come from?

handball (German) comes from German hand, from Middle High German hant, from Old High German hant, from Proto-West Germanic handu, from Swedish hand, from Old Swedish hand, from Old Norse hǫnd, from Proto-Germanic handuz — hand.

handball (German): handball Olympic team sport

Definitions

  1. handball Olympic team sport

Ancestry of “handball”, step by step

handball traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German hand

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanhandhand
2Middle High Germanhanthand
3Old High Germanhanthand
4Proto-West Germanichanduhand
5SwedishhandA hand; A hand; the set of cards held by a player
6Old SwedishhandA hand; A direction; A behalf
7Old Norsehǫndhand
8Proto-Germanichanduzhand

via German ball

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanballball round or roundish object, most commonly used in games
2Frenchbaldance party, ball
3Old Frenchbal—

Words derived from “handball”

Every word from Proto-Germanic handuz →