Where does “bank” come from?

bank (Old Dutch) comes from Proto-West Germanic banki, from Proto-Germanic bankiz, from Proto-Indo-European bʰeg- — to break.

Ancestry of “bank”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanicbankibench
2Proto-Germanicbankiza raised surface; bulge; hillock; slope; bench
3Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰeg-to break
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰeg- →Every word from Proto-Germanic bankiz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic banki →