Where does “-ware” come from?

-ware (Old English) comes from Proto-West Germanic *-wari, from Proto-Germanic warjaz, from Proto-Germanic warjaną, from Proto-Indo-European wēr-, from Proto-Indo-European wer- — to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel.

-ware (Old English): suffix denoting inhabitants or residents of a...

Definitions

  1. suffix denoting inhabitants or residents of a...

Ancestry of “-ware”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanic*-waridweller, inhabitant, citizen
2Proto-Germanicwarjazdefender; inhabitant; citizen
3Proto-Germanicwarjanąto ward off, to defend against; to thwart, to...
4Proto-Indo-Europeanwēr-true
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwer-to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel

Words derived from “-ware”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European wer- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European wēr- →Every word from Proto-Germanic warjaną →