Where does “småfågel” come from?
småfågel (Swedish) comes from Swedish små, from Polish smar, from Middle High German smër, from Old High German smero, from Proto-West Germanic *smeru, from Proto-Germanic smerwą, from Proto-Celtic smérus, from Proto-Indo-European smérus — to fall into thought, remember, care for; to fall...
småfågel (Swedish): a small bird (especially a passerine (tätting))
Definitions
- a small bird (especially a passerine (tätting))
Ancestry of “småfågel”, step by step
småfågel traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Swedish små
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swedish | små | |
| 2 | Polish | smar | grease, lubricant |
| 3 | Middle High German | smër | — |
| 4 | Old High German | smero | fat |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *smeru | grease, butter, fat |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | smerwą | grease, butter, fat |
| 7 | Proto-Celtic | smérus | marrow |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | smérus | grease |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | smer- | to fall into thought, remember, care for; to fall... |
via Swedish fågel
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swedish | fågel | a bird |
| 2 | Old Swedish | fughl | bird |
| 3 | Old Norse | fugl | Alternative form of fogl |
| 4 | Old Norse | fogl | bird |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | fuglaz | bird |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | fluglaz | — |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | fleuganą | to fly |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | plewk- | to fly, flow, run; to splash, to flap with hands |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | plew- | to fly, flow, run |