Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “kenning” come from?

kenning (Middle English) comes from Middle English kennen, from Old English cennan, from Proto-West Germanic kannjan, from Proto-Germanic kanjaną, from Proto-Indo-European ǵonh₁éyeti, from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- — to produce, to beget, to give birth.

Ancestry of “kenning”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishkennento beget, conceive ; to give birth to; to make...
2Old Englishcennanto make known, declare; to produce, bring forth,...
3Proto-West Germanickannjanto beget, bring forth
4Proto-Germanickanjanąto beget, bring forth
5Proto-Indo-Europeanǵonh₁éyeti—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanǵenh₁-to produce, to beget, to give birth

Words derived from “kenning”

  • kenning
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- →