Where does “niesen” come from?
niesen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German niosan, from Proto-West Germanic hneusan, from Proto-Germanic hneusaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)knus- — to sneeze.
Ancestry of “niesen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old High German | niosan | to sneeze |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | hneusan | to sneeze |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | hneusaną | to sneeze |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)knus- | to sneeze |