English
on-
On- comes from Proto-West Germanic *ana- ‘Forming verbs and adjectives from participles…’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ano-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ano-reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*an-reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*ana-‘Forming verbs and adjectives from participles and nouns, with various senses of on, upon’reconstructed
- Englishtodayon-
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ano-reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*an-reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*ana-‘Forming verbs and adjectives from participles and nouns, with various senses of on, upon’reconstructed
- Englishtodayon-
Every English word from Proto-Indo-European *ano-
Today it means
prefix on, at, toward, upon.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ano- / on-