Where does “etternavn” come from?

etternavn (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Norwegian Bokmål navn, from Danish navn, from Old Danish nauæn, from Old Norse nafn, from Proto-Germanic namô, from Proto-Indo-European h₁nómn̥, from Proto-Indo-European h₃neh₃- — to name.

etternavn (Norwegian Bokmål): last name, surname

Definitions

  1. last name, surname

Ancestry of “etternavn”, step by step

etternavn traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Norwegian Bokmål navn

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Norwegian Bokmålnavnname
2Danishnavnname; reputation
3Old Danishnauænname
4Old Norsenafnname, title
5Proto-Germanicnamôname
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁nómn̥name
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₃neh₃-to name

via Norwegian Bokmål etter

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Norwegian Bokmåletterafter
2Old Norseettir
3Proto-Germanicaftirimore aft, further behind
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂epoterosfurther behind, further away
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₃neh₃-Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁nómn̥Every word from Proto-Germanic namô