English
Seif
Seif comes from German Seife ‘soap’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *seyb- ‘to pour out, dribble, strain, trickle’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*seyb-‘to pour out, dribble, strain, trickle’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*saipǭ‘soap’reconstructed
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050seifa
- Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350seife‘soap’
- Germanc. 1650–presentSeife‘soap’
- German, derivedc. 1650–presentSeif
- Englishtodaysame form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*seyb-‘to pour out, dribble, strain, trickle’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*saipǭ‘soap’reconstructed
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050seifa
- Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350seife‘soap’
- Germanc. 1650–presentSeife‘soap’
- German, derivedc. 1650–presentSeif
- Englishtodaysame form
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *seyb- ‘to pour out, dribble, strain, trickle’
suet, seep, sebaceous, sebum, 3 more
through Proto-Germanic *saipǭ ‘soap’
Today it means
name A surname.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *seyb- / Seif