Where does “helvet” come from?

helvet (Northern Sami) comes from Finnish helvetti, from Swedish helvete, from Old Norse helvíti, from Old Norse viti, from Proto-Germanic wītiją, from Proto-Indo-European weyd- — to see.

helvet (Northern Sami): hell

Definitions

  1. hell

Ancestry of “helvet”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishhelvettihell; hell, devil; damn
2SwedishhelveteHell; the place where sinners are said to go...
3Old Norsehelvítihell
4Old Norsevitiindicator; token, mark, signal; beacon
5Proto-Germanicwītijąpunishment
6Proto-Indo-Europeanweyd-to see
Every word from Proto-Indo-European weyd- →Every word from Proto-Germanic wītiją →Every word from Old Norse viti →