Where does “wyndwen” come from?
wyndwen (Middle English) comes from Old English windwian, from Proto-West Germanic *windwōn, from Proto-Germanic windwōną, from Proto-Indo-European wē- — to winnow, thresh; to blow, to breathe.
Ancestry of “wyndwen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old English | windwian | to winnow, fan, ventilate; to fan, winnow |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | *windwōn | — |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | windwōną | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | wē- | to winnow, thresh; to blow, to breathe |