Where does “wach” come from?

wach (Middle High German) comes from Old High German wē, from Proto-West Germanic wai, from Proto-Germanic wai, from Proto-Indo-European wai — oh!; woe!.

Ancestry of “wach”, step by step

wach traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Old High German wē

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanwēwoe
2Proto-West Germanicwaiwoe!, alas!
3Proto-Germanicwaiwoe! alas!
4Proto-Indo-Europeanwaioh!; woe!

via Old High German wah

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanwah—

via Old High German wa

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old High Germanwa—

Words derived from “wach”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European wai →Every word from Proto-Germanic wai →Every word from Proto-West Germanic wai →