Etymograph

English

ember

Ember comes from Proto-West Germanic *aimuʀjā ‘embers, hot coals’, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *aimuzjǭ.

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aimuzjǭ‘ember, hot ash’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aimuʀjā‘embers, hot coals’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ǣmyrġe
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500embre
  5. Englishtodayember

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aimuzjǭ‘ember, hot ash’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*aimuʀjā‘embers, hot coals’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ǣmyrġe
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500embre
  5. Englishtodayember

A compound of *aimaz ‘steam, vapor’ + *uzjǭ ‘fire’

Proto-Indo-European *h₁ews- ‘to burn’

Proto-Indo-European *Hus-yéh₂

Proto-Germanic *uzjǭ ‘fire’

The story

The latter is from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ews- (‘to burn’). The b is intrusive and was added in English for ease of pronunciation when the vowel of the second syllable (y) disappeared.

Every English word from Proto-Germanic *aimuzjǭ

Another origin of ember

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)r̥-nwH‘to flow, move, run’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*runiz‘a course’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ryne‘course, path along which motion takes place’
  4. Old English, derivedc. 450–1150ymbryne‘course’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500embryne‘running around, circuit’
  6. Englishtodayember

Spelling changed through folk etymology.folk etymology The source marks this as unproven or a folk etymology. Quoted, not asserted.

Today it means

noun A piece of coal or wood glowing by heat; a hot coal.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *aimuzjǭ / ember

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