Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “heiligen” come from?

heiligen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German heilagōn, from Proto-Germanic hailagōną, from Proto-Germanic hailaz, from Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilos.

Ancestry of “heiligen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanheilagōn—
2Proto-Germanichailagōnąto hallow, to make holy, to sanctify
3Proto-Germanichailazwhole, unbroken, intact; entire, complete; hale,...
4Proto-Indo-European*kéh₂ilos—

Words derived from “heiligen”

  • heiligen
  • hellige
Every word from Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilos →