Where does “stolen” come from?
stolen (Old English) comes from Proto-Germanic stulanaz, from Proto-Germanic stelaną, from Proto-Indo-European tsel- — to sneak.
Ancestry of “stolen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Proto-Germanic | stulanaz | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | stelaną | to steal; to sneak |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | tsel- | to sneak |
Words derived from “stolen”