Where does “פֿרעגצייכן” come from?
פֿרעגצייכן (Yiddish) comes from Yiddish צייכן, from Middle High German zeichen, from Old High German zeihhan, from Proto-West Germanic taikn, from Proto-Germanic taikną, from Proto-Indo-European deyḱ- — to point out.
פֿרעגצייכן (Yiddish): question mark
Ancestry of “פֿרעגצייכן”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Yiddish | צייכן | mark, sign |
| 2 | Middle High German | zeichen | — |
| 3 | Old High German | zeihhan | sign, symbol, feature; sign, symbol |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | taikn | sign, token, symbol |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | taikną | sign, token, symbol |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | deyḱ- | to point out |