Where does “tier” come from?

tier (Middle High German) comes from Old High German tior, from Proto-West Germanic deuʀ, from Proto-Germanic deuzą, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewsóm, from Proto-Indo-European dʰéws, from Proto-Indo-European dʰwes- — to breathe; breath; spirit, soul > creature.

Ancestry of “tier”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germantioranimal
2Proto-West Germanicdeuʀanimal, beast
3Proto-Germanicdeuząanimal, beast
4Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewsómliving thing
5Proto-Indo-Europeandʰéwsbreath
6Proto-Indo-Europeandʰwes-to breathe; breath; spirit, soul > creature

Words derived from “tier”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰwes- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰéws →Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewsóm →