Where does “steer” come from?
steer (Middle English) comes from Old English stēor, from Proto-Germanic stiuriją, from Proto-Germanic stiurijaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé-, from Chichewa iye — he, she.
Ancestry of “steer”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | stēor | rudder; a young bull or cow; steer; steer |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | stiuriją | — |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | stiurijaną | to direct, steer |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | -janą | Derives denominatives from nouns and factitives... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 7 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |