Where does “være” come from?
være (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Danish være, from Old Danish wæræ, from Old Norse vera, from Old Norse vesa, from Proto-Germanic *wesaną, from Proto-Indo-European wes- — to dress, clothe.
være (Norwegian Bokmål): to be; to sense or feel
Ancestry of “være”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Danish | være | to be; to be, exist; to have |
| 2 | Old Danish | wæræ | — |
| 3 | Old Norse | vera | to be |
| 4 | Old Norse | vesa | Archaic form of vera; to be |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | *wesaną | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | wes- | to dress, clothe |
Words derived from “være”