Where does “bison” come from?

bison (Middle English) comes from Old French bison, from Latin bisōn, from Proto-Germanic wisundaz, from Proto-Indo-European wisAn-, from Proto-Indo-European weys- — to raise, increase; to produce, procreate.

Ancestry of “bison”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchbison—
2Latinbisōnbison (Bison bonasus)
3Proto-Germanicwisundazbison, wisent; wild ox, aurochs
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanwisAn-aurochs, aurochs horn
5Proto-Indo-Europeanweys-to raise, increase; to produce, procreate

Words derived from “bison”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European weys- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European wisAn- →Every word from Proto-Germanic wisundaz →