Where does “szpak” come from?
szpak (Polish) comes from Middle High German spaz, from Middle English sparwe, from Old High German sparo, from Proto-West Germanic sparwō, from Proto-Germanic sparwô, from Proto-Indo-European spḗr — sparrow.
szpak (Polish): starling
Ancestry of “szpak”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle High German | spaz | — |
| 2 | Middle English | sparwe | The sparrow or its meat |
| 3 | Old High German | sparo | sparrow |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | sparwō | sparrow |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | sparwô | sparrow |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | spḗr | sparrow |