Where does “handful” come from?

handful (Middle English) comes from Old English handfull, from Old English hand, from Proto-West Germanic handu, from Swedish hand, from Old Swedish hand, from Old Norse hǫnd, from Proto-Germanic handuz — hand.

Ancestry of “handful”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhandfullhandful
2Old EnglishhandA hand
3Proto-West Germanichanduhand
4SwedishhandA hand; A hand; the set of cards held by a player
5Old SwedishhandA hand; A direction; A behalf
6Old Norsehǫndhand
7Proto-Germanichanduzhand

Words derived from “handful”

Every word from Proto-Germanic handuz →Every word from Old Norse hǫnd →Every word from Old Swedish hand →
handful — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer