Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “küssen” come from?

küssen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German kussen, from Proto-Germanic kussijaną, from Proto-Germanic -janą, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé-, from Chichewa iye — he, she.

Ancestry of “küssen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germankussen—
2Proto-Germanickussijanąto kiss
3Proto-Germanic-janąDerives denominatives from nouns and factitives...
4Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
5Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
6Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “küssen”

  • Kopfkissen
  • Luftkissenboot
  • Kissen
  • Kissenschlacht
  • Këssen
  • Chüssi
Every word from Chichewa iye →