Where does “spire” come from?
spire (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Old Norse spíra, from Proto-Germanic spīrǭ, from Proto-Indo-European spey- — sharp point, stick.
spire (Norwegian Bokmål): sprout; to sprout
Ancestry of “spire”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old Norse | spíra | reed; stalk; thin tree-shoot |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | spīrǭ | peak; summit; top; pole; rod; reed; stalk |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | spey- | sharp point, stick |