Where does “cliven” come from?

cliven (Middle English) comes from Old English clīfan, from Proto-Germanic klībaną, from Proto-Indo-European gleybʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European gley-, from Proto-Indo-European gel- — to be cold, to freeze.

cliven (Middle English): Alternative form of cleven

Definitions

  1. Alternative form of cleven

Ancestry of “cliven”, step by step

cliven traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English clīfan

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishclīfanto cleave, adhere, stick
2Proto-Germanicklībanąto stick, cling to
3Proto-Indo-Europeangleybʰ-to stick
4Proto-Indo-Europeangley-to glue, paste, stick together; to glue, stick...
5Proto-Indo-Europeangel-to be cold, to freeze

via Old Norse klyfja

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norseklyfjato load with packs
2Old Norsekljúfato cleave, split
3Proto-Germanickleubanąto split, to cleave
4Proto-Indo-Europeanglewbʰ-to split
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gel- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European gley- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European gleybʰ- →