Etymology Explorer › Middle Dutch

Where does “specht” come from?

specht (Middle Dutch) comes from Old Dutch speht, from Proto-West Germanic spiht, from Proto-Germanic spihtaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)peyk- — name of a bird; woodpecker; magpie.

Ancestry of “specht”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Dutchspeht—
2Proto-West Germanicspihtwoodpecker
3Proto-Germanicspihtazwoodpecker
4Proto-Indo-European(s)peyk-name of a bird; woodpecker; magpie

Words derived from “specht”

  • specht
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)peyk- →