Etymology Explorer › Middle High German

Where does “spinnen” come from?

spinnen (Middle High German) comes from Old High German spinnan, from Proto-West Germanic spinnan, from Proto-Germanic spinnaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)pénh₁-ne-, from Proto-Indo-European (s)penh₁- — to twist; to weave.

Ancestry of “spinnen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanspinnan—
2Proto-West Germanicspinnanto spin
3Proto-Germanicspinnanąto spin
4Proto-Indo-European(s)pénh₁-ne-—
5Proto-Indo-European(s)penh₁-to twist; to weave

Words derived from “spinnen”

  • spinnen
  • Spinnerin
  • Fichtenspinner
  • Spinner
  • Spinnrad
  • шпинати
  • špinati
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)penh₁- →