Where does “stëln” come from?
stëln (Middle High German) comes from Old High German stelan, from Proto-Germanic stelaną, from Proto-Indo-European tsel- — to sneak.
Ancestry of “stëln”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old High German | stelan | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | stelaną | to steal; to sneak |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | tsel- | to sneak |