Etymology Explorer › Icelandic

Where does “svífa” come from?

svífa (Icelandic) comes from Old Norse svífa, from Proto-Germanic swībaną, from Proto-Indo-European swey-, from Proto-Indo-European sew- — to press out, extract; juice; liquid, rain; to...

svífa (Icelandic): to hover, glide, soar

Definitions

  1. to hover, glide, soar

Ancestry of “svífa”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsesvífato rove, ramble; to swerve, drift
2Proto-Germanicswībanąto revolve; move around; sway; stray; to sweep;...
3Proto-Indo-Europeanswey-to twist, swing; to hiss; whistle; to swing,...
4Proto-Indo-Europeansew-to press out, extract; juice; liquid, rain; to...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sew- →