Where does “hwælhunta” come from?

hwælhunta (Old English) comes from Old English hwæl, from Proto-West Germanic hwal, from Proto-Germanic hwalaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)kʷálos — large fish; sheatfish.

hwælhunta (Old English): whaler

Definitions

  1. whaler

Ancestry of “hwælhunta”, step by step

hwælhunta traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old English hwæl

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhwæla whale
2Proto-West Germanichwalwhale
3Proto-Germanichwalazwhale, sheatfish
4Proto-Indo-European(s)kʷáloslarge fish; sheatfish

via Old English hunta

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhuntahunter
2Old Englishhuntianto hunt
3Proto-West Germanic*huntōnto hunt
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)kʷálos →Every word from Proto-Germanic hwalaz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic hwal →