Where does “sealfian” come from?
sealfian (Old English) comes from Proto-Germanic salbōną, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti, from Proto-Indo-European -yéti, from Proto-Indo-European yé-, from Chichewa iye — he, she.
Ancestry of “sealfian”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Proto-Germanic | salbōną | to salve, to anoint |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 6 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |