Where does “share” come from?

share (Middle English) comes from Old English scear, from Proto-West Germanic skeran, from Proto-Germanic skeraną, from Proto-Indo-European sḱer- — to caw, crow.

Ancestry of “share”, step by step

share traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English scear

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishscearscissors, shears; plowshare
2Proto-West Germanicskeranto shear, to cut
3Proto-Germanicskeranąto shear
4Proto-Indo-Europeansḱer-to caw, crow

via Old English scær

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishscærploughshare
2Proto-Germanicskarazploughshare
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sḱer- →Every word from Proto-Germanic skeraną →Every word from Proto-West Germanic skeran →