Where does “zeichen” come from?
zeichen (German) comes from Old High German zeihhan, from Proto-West Germanic taikn, from Proto-Germanic taikną, from Proto-Indo-European deyḱ- — to point out.
Ancestry of “zeichen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old High German | zeihhan | sign, symbol, feature; sign, symbol |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | taikn | sign, token, symbol |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | taikną | sign, token, symbol |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | deyḱ- | to point out |