Where does “ja” come from?

ja (German) comes from Middle High German ja, from Old High German jā, from Proto-West Germanic jā, from Proto-Germanic ja, from Proto-Indo-European yē — already.

ja (German): yes; yea, yeah, aye; obviously; certainly; of...

Definitions

  1. yes; yea, yeah, aye; obviously; certainly; of...

Ancestry of “ja”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germanja—
2Old High Germanjā—
3Proto-West Germanicjāyes; thus, so
4Proto-Germanicjayes; thus, so
5Proto-Indo-Europeanyēalready

Words derived from “ja”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European yē →Every word from Proto-Germanic ja →Every word from Proto-West Germanic jā →