Where does “begen” come from?
begen (Middle Low German) comes from Old Dutch bigen, from Proto-West Germanic *biginnan, from Proto-Germanic biginnaną, from Proto-Germanic bi-, from Proto-Germanic bi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂m̥bʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂n̥tbʰi, from Proto-Indo-European h₂énts — on, onto.
Ancestry of “begen”, step by step
begen traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Old Dutch bigen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Dutch | bigen | — |
| 2 | Proto-West Germanic | *biginnan | to start, to begin |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | biginnaną | to begin |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | bi- | by, at |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | bi | by, at; near, around |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂m̥bʰi | around, on either side of, about; in exchange... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂n̥tbʰi | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂énts | forehead; front |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ent- | face; forehead; front |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂en- | on, onto |