Where does “halven” come from?

halven (Middle English) comes from Old English hilfan, from Proto-West Germanic halbijan, from Proto-Germanic halbijaną, from Proto-Germanic halbaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)kelH-, from Proto-Indo-European (s)kel- — to bend, crook; bent, crooked; leg, heel, knee,...

Ancestry of “halven”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhilfan—
2Proto-West Germanichalbijanto halve, to cut in half
3Proto-Germanichalbijanąto halve
4Proto-Germanichalbazhalf
5Proto-Indo-European(s)kelH-to cut; to split, to separate
6Proto-Indo-European(s)kel-to bend, crook; bent, crooked; leg, heel, knee,...

Words derived from “halven”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kel- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kelH- →Every word from Proto-Germanic halbaz →