Etymology Explorer › Old Swedish

Where does “i hæl” come from?

i hæl (Old Swedish) comes from Old Norse í hel, from Proto-Germanic haljō, from Proto-Indo-European ḱel- — to cover; to incline.

Ancestry of “i hæl”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Norseí helto the netherworld
2Proto-Germanichaljōthe netherworld, the underworld, hell
3Proto-Indo-Europeanḱel-to cover; to incline

Words derived from “i hæl”

  • ihjäl
  • ihiäl
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱel- →