Where does “all” come from?
all (Middle English) comes from Old English eall, from Proto-West Germanic all, from Proto-Germanic allaz, from Proto-Indo-European h₂él-.
all (Middle English): all; all, every
Ancestry of “all”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | eall | all; whole, entire; everything |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | all | all |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | allaz | all |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂él- | — |