Where does “sparren” come from?

sparren (Middle English) comes from Middle Low German sperren, from Proto-Germanic *sparrijan, from Proto-Germanic *sparrijaną — to bar, to block.

sparren (Middle English): to close, bar; to thrust or strike rapidly

Definitions

  1. to close, bar; to thrust or strike rapidly

Ancestry of “sparren”, step by step

sparren traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle Low German sperren

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Low Germansperren—
2Proto-Germanic*sparrijan—
3Proto-Germanic*sparrijanąto bar, to block

via Old English sperran

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishsperranto strike, spar
Every word from Proto-Germanic *sparrijaną →Every word from Proto-Germanic *sparrijan →Every word from Middle Low German sperren →