Where does “hvem” come from?
hvem (Swedish) comes from Swedish vem, from Old Norse hveim, from Proto-Germanic hwammai, from Proto-Germanic hwaz, from Proto-Indo-European kʷos, from Proto-Indo-European kʷ- — The primary interrogative root.
hvem (Swedish): Obsolete spelling of vem
Ancestry of “hvem”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Swedish | vem | who, whom |
| 2 | Old Norse | hveim | — |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | hwammai | masculine/neuter dative of *hwaz |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | hwaz | who, what; whose; whom |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | kʷos | See *kʷis |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | kʷ- | The primary interrogative root |