Where does “melk” come from?

melk (Middle English) comes from Old English meolc, from Proto-West Germanic meluk, from Proto-Germanic meluks, from Proto-Indo-European h₂melǵ- — to milk; milk.

Ancestry of “melk”, step by step

melk traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English meolc

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishmeolcmilk
2Proto-West Germanicmelukmilk
3Proto-Germanicmeluksmilk
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂melǵ-to milk; milk

via Old English meoluc

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishmeolucmilk
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂melǵ-Every word from Proto-Germanic meluksEvery word from Proto-West Germanic meluk