Where does “list” come from?

list (Middle Dutch) comes from Old Dutch list, from Proto-West Germanic *listi, from Proto-Germanic listiz, from Proto-Indo-European leys- — to trace, to track.

Ancestry of “list”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Dutchlistruse, trick
2Proto-West Germanic*listiart, craft
3Proto-Germaniclistizart, craft; cunning, guile
4Proto-Indo-Europeanleys-to trace, to track

Words derived from “list”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European leys- →Every word from Proto-Germanic listiz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic *listi →