Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “kirche” come from?

kirche (German) comes from Middle High German kirche, from Old High German kirihha, from Proto-West Germanic kirikā, from Ancient Greek κυριακόν, from Ancient Greek Κύριος, from Proto-Hellenic *kúrios.

Ancestry of “kirche”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle High Germankirchechurch
2Old High Germankirihha—
3Proto-West Germanickirikāchurch
4Ancient Greekκυριακόνchurch
5Ancient GreekΚύριοςLord
6Proto-Hellenic*kúrios—
Every word from Proto-Hellenic *kúrios →