Where does “on” come from?

on (Middle Dutch) comes from Old Dutch āna, from Proto-West Germanic ana, from Proto-Germanic *an, from Proto-Germanic ana, from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- — on, onto.

on (Middle Dutch): without

Definitions

  1. without

Ancestry of “on”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Dutchāna—
2Proto-West Germanicanaon
3Proto-Germanic*an—
4Proto-Germanicanaon, at; on, onto; ana
5Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →Every word from Proto-Germanic ana →Every word from Proto-Germanic *an →