Where does “halm” come from?

halm (Middle High German) comes from Old High German halm, from Proto-West Germanic *halm, from Proto-Germanic halmaz, from Proto-Indo-European ḱolh₂mos, from Proto-Indo-European ḱelh₂- — to pierce, strike; to stick; prick; stab.

Ancestry of “halm”, step by step

halm traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old High German halm

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanhalm—
2Proto-West Germanic*halmhalm, stem, stalk
3Proto-Germanichalmazhalm; stem; stalk; straw; hay
4Proto-Indo-Europeanḱolh₂mosstalk
5Proto-Indo-Europeanḱelh₂-to pierce, strike; to stick; prick; stab

via Proto-Germanic helmô

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Germanichelmôhandle, helm
2Proto-Indo-Europeanḱel-to cover; to incline

Words derived from “halm”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱelh₂- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱolh₂mos →Every word from Proto-Germanic halmaz →