Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “lam” come from?

lam (Middle High German) comes from Old High German lam, from Proto-West Germanic *lam, from Proto-Germanic lamaz, from Proto-Indo-European h₃lemH- — broken; weak, broken, soft.

Ancestry of “lam”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanlamlame
2Proto-West Germanic*lam—
3Proto-Germaniclamazlame; withered, defective
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃lemH-broken; weak, broken, soft

Words derived from “lam”

  • flügellahm
  • kreuzlahm
  • lahm
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₃lemH- →