Where does “wiht” come from?

wiht (Old Dutch) comes from Proto-Germanic wihtą, from Proto-Indo-European wekti-, from Proto-Indo-European wekʷ- — to speak, to sound out.

wiht (Old Dutch): thing, creature

Definitions

  1. thing, creature

Ancestry of “wiht”, step by step

wiht traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Proto-Germanic wihtą

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Germanicwihtąthing, creature
2Proto-Indo-Europeanwekti-object, thing; thing; cause, sake, thing
3Proto-Indo-Europeanwekʷ-to speak, to sound out

via Proto-West Germanic wihti

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanicwihtithing, creature; weight
2Proto-Germanicwihtizessence, being; thing, creature; weight
3Proto-Indo-Europeanweǵʰ-to bring; to transport

Words derived from “wiht”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European wekʷ- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European wekti- →Every word from Proto-Germanic wihtą →