Where does “ball” come from?

ball (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Danish bål, from French bal, from Late Latin ballare, from Ancient Greek βαλλίζω, from Proto-Indo-European gʷelH- — to throw, reach, pierce; to hit by throwing.

ball (Norwegian Bokmål): ball solid or hollow sphere

Definitions

  1. ball solid or hollow sphere

Ancestry of “ball”, step by step

ball traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Danish bål

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Danishbålfire, bonfire, pyre
2Frenchbaldance party, ball
3Late Latinballareto play, dance; to dance; present active...
4Ancient Greekβαλλίζωto dance, jump about
5Proto-Indo-EuropeangʷelH-to throw, reach, pierce; to hit by throwing

via Old Norse bǫllr

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norsebǫllrround object, sphere, ball; testicle
2Proto-Germanicballuzround object, ball; ball of the hand, foot, etc
3Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰel-to sound; to speak, roar, bark; shiny, white; to...
4Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰōl-—

Words derived from “ball”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European gʷelH- →Every word from Ancient Greek βαλλίζω →Every word from Late Latin ballare →