Where does “förstå” come from?
förstå (Swedish) comes from Old Swedish forstanda, from Middle Low German vorstān, from Middle Low German vor-, from Old Saxon far-, from Proto-Germanic fra-, from Proto-Indo-European pro-, from Proto-Indo-European por-, from Proto-Indo-European per- — passed , crossed.
förstå (Swedish): to understand
Definitions
- to understand
Ancestry of “förstå”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Swedish | forstanda | — |
| 2 | Middle Low German | vorstān | to understand |
| 3 | Middle Low German | vor- | modyfying verb-prefix, denoting amongst other... |
| 4 | Old Saxon | far- | forming verbs from verbs with various senses... |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fra- | off, away; completely, fully, up |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |