Where does “schwarzarbeiten” come from?

schwarzarbeiten (German) comes from German Schwärz, from Middle High German swarz, from Old High German swarz, from Proto-West Germanic swart, from Proto-Germanic swartaz, from Proto-Indo-European swordo- — dirty, dark, black.

schwarzarbeiten (German): to moonlight (work illicitly)

Definitions

  1. to moonlight (work illicitly)

Ancestry of “schwarzarbeiten”, step by step

schwarzarbeiten traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German Schwärz

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanSchwärz
2Middle High Germanswarz
3Old High Germanswarzblack
4Proto-West Germanicswartblack
5Proto-Germanicswartazblack
6Proto-Indo-Europeanswordo-dirty, dark, black

via German arbeiten

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanarbeitento work; to work, function, run, operate; to...
2Old High Germanarbeitento toil, work hard
3Proto-Germanicarbaidijanąto work
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃órbʰosorphan; servant, slave, worker
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃erbʰ-to change allegiance, status, ownership;...

Words derived from “schwarzarbeiten

Every word from Proto-Indo-European swordo-Every word from Proto-Germanic swartazEvery word from Proto-West Germanic swart
schwarzarbeiten — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer