Where does “dürfen” come from?

dürfen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German durfan, from Proto-West Germanic þurban, from Proto-Germanic þurbaną, from Proto-Indo-European terp- — to satisfy.

dürfen (Middle High German): to need

Definitions

  1. to need

Ancestry of “dürfen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germandurfan—
2Proto-West Germanicþurbanto need
3Proto-Germanicþurbanąto need, to require; to have to
4Proto-Indo-Europeanterp-to satisfy

Words derived from “dürfen”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European terp- →Every word from Proto-Germanic þurbaną →Every word from Proto-West Germanic þurban →