Etymology Explorer › Middle Low German

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

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Dutchbigen—
2Proto-West Germanic*biginnan—
3Proto-Germanicbiginnanąto begin
4Proto-Germanicbi-by, at
5Proto-Germanicbiby, at; near, around
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂m̥bʰiaround, on either side of, about; in exchange...
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂n̥tbʰi—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂éntsforehead; front
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂ent-face; forehead; front
10Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂en-on, onto

Words derived from “begen”

  • begå
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂en- →