Where does “hwælhuntoþ” come from?

hwælhuntoþ (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.

hwælhuntoþ (Old English): whaling

Definitions

  1. whaling

Ancestry of “hwælhuntoþ”, step by step

hwælhuntoþ 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 huntoþ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishhuntoþhunting, a hunt
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 →