Where does “butter” come from?

butter (Middle High German) comes from Old High German butera, from Proto-West Germanic buterā, from Latin būtȳrum, from Ancient Greek βούτυρον, from Ancient Greek τυρός, from Proto-Hellenic tūrós, from Proto-Indo-European tuh₂-ró-s, from Proto-Indo-European tewh₂- — to swell; to crowd; to be strong.

Ancestry of “butter”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanbutera—
2Proto-West Germanicbuterābutter
3Latinbūtȳrumbutter
4Ancient Greekβούτυρονbutter
5Ancient Greekτυρόςcheese
6Proto-Hellenictūróscheese
7Proto-Indo-Europeantuh₂-ró-s—
8Proto-Indo-Europeantewh₂-to swell; to crowd; to be strong

Words derived from “butter”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European tewh₂- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European tuh₂-ró-s →Every word from Proto-Hellenic tūrós →