Where does “hamlet” come from?
hamlet (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Norwegian Bokmål let, from Old Norse Litr, from Proto-Germanic wlitiz, from Proto-Indo-European wēl-.
hamlet (Norwegian Bokmål): skin colour, complexion
Ancestry of “hamlet”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Norwegian Bokmål | let | colour; imperative of lete |
| 2 | Old Norse | Litr | — |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | wlitiz | sight, appearance; countenance, face; look,... |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | wēl- | — |