How the word for To Love has changed

The origin and history of some of the European / Indo-European words for to love

B ← A indicates that the word in language B has evolved directly
from a word in language A, or at least a very similar language. For
example, Persian did not evolve directly from Avestan, but the Old
Persian texts lack the more extensive vocabulary of the similar
Avestan language. Alternatively, the word could be borrowed
from another language. English is full of words borrowed from
Old French.

Abbreviations at bottom of page
* = hypothetical, reconstructed

GERMANIC
WEST GERMANIC

English

to love ← M.Eng. to lovie ← O.Eng. lufian ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Scots

tae luve ← M.Sc. to love ← O.Nth. lufan ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Frisian
   North Frisian
      (Island)

lef haa ← O.Fris. luvia ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

   North Frisian
      (Mainland)

liiw heewe ← O.Fris. luvia ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

   East Frisian

ljo hääbe ← O.Fris. luvia ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

   West Frisian

leafhawwe ← O.Fris. luvia ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Dutch

houden van, liefhebben ← M.Du. lieven ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Afrikaans

liefhê ← Dutch liefhebben ← M.Du. lieven ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Plattdeutsch

leevhebben ← M.L.G. lêfhebben, lêven

East Friesland Platt

leevhebben ← M.L.G. lêfhebben, lêven

Kölsch (Cologne)

leev han ← M.L.G. lêfhebben, lêven

Luxemburgish

gär hunn ← gären hunn ← M.H.G. gerne haben, lieben

Moselle Platt Lorraine

géer hann ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Rhine Platt Lorraine

géer hann ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

German

lieben ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Yiddish

leeb hoben ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Alsace German

lieb hàn ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Swiss German

gärn haa, liebe ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Swabian

lieba ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Bavarian

lieban ← M.H.G. lieben ← O.H.G. liubôn ← Pr.W.Gmc. *luƀōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

NORTH GERMANIC

Icelandic

elska ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Faroese

elska ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Norwegian (Nynorsk)

elske ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Norwegian

elske ← Rec.Dan. elske ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Danish

elske ← Rec.Dan. elske ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Swedish

älska ← O.Sw. ælska ← O.N. elska ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

EAST GERMANIC

Gothic (extinct)

frijōn ← Pr.Gmc. *luƀ- ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

CELTIC
GOIDELIC

Irish

gráigh ← Rec.Ir. grádhaim ← O.Ir. caraim ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

Scottish Gaelic

gràdhaich ← O.Ir. caraim ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

Manx

cur graih da ← O.Ir. caraim ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

BRITTONIC

Welsh

caru ← E.Mod.W. kary ← M.W. caru ← Pr.Brit. *cari-, *carid- ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

Cornish

kara ← K.K. kara ← Uni.C. cara ← Lt.C. cara ← M.C. care ← Pr.Brit. *cari-, *carid- ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

Breton

karout ← Rec.Br. karout ← M.Br. caret ← Pr.Brit. *cari-, *carid- ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

GAULISH

Gaulish (extinct)

car- ← Pr.Clt. *kareti ← Lt.I.E. *kār- ← Pr.I.E. *kéh₂r-

ROMANCE
WEST ROMANCE

Walloon

inmer ← O.Fr. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Picard

avoèr tchèr ← O.Fr. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Guernsey French

oimaïr ← O.N.F. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Jersey French

aimer ← O.N.F. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Gallo

emer ← O.Fr. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

French

aimer ← O.Fr. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Haitian Creole

renmen ← *aimin ← French aimer ← O.Fr. amer ← Lat. amare, diligere

Auvergnat

amar ← O.Pr. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Gascon

aimar ← O.Pr. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Aranese

estimar ← (from Lat. aestimare) O.Pr. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Aragonese

aimar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Asturian

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Galician

amar ← O.Gal./Port. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Portuguese

amar ← O.Gal./Port. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Spanish

querer, amar ← Lat. quaerere, amare, diligere

Valencian

estimar, amar ← (estimar from Lat. aestimare) O.Cat. aesmar, amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Catalan

estimar, amar ← (estimar from Lat. aestimare) O.Cat. aesmar, amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Occitan

aimar ← O.Pr. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Provençal

ama ← O.Pr. amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Francoprovençal

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Romansch

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

    Sursilvan Romansch

carezar ← Lat. amare, diligere

    Sutsilvan Romansch

carezar ← Lat. amare, diligere

    Surmiran Romansch

carezzar ← Lat. amare, diligere

    Upper Engadine Romansch

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

    Lower Engadine Romansch

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

Ladin

amé ← Lat. amare, diligere

Friulan

amâ ← Lat. amare, diligere

Monégasque

aimà ← Lat. amare, diligere

Ligurian

amâ ← Lat. amare, diligere

Piedmontese

amé ← Lat. amare, diligere

Lombard

amà ← Lat. amare, diligere

Emilian

vlair bän ← Lat. amare, diligere

Venetian

amar ← Lat. amare, diligere

ITALO-ROMANCE

Italian

amare ← Lat. amare, diligere

Corsican

tène caru ← Lat. amare, diligere

Neapolitan

vulé bène ← Lat. amare, diligere

Sicilian

amari ← Lat. amare, diligere

BALKAN ROMANCE

Romanian

iubi ← (from O.C.S. ljubiti) Lat. amare, diligere

SOUTHERN ROMANCE

Sardinian

amare ← Lat. amare, diligere

GREEK

Greek

agapó ← Anc.Gk. agapō, eraō, p^hileō, stergō (1. for others, for God, Christian love, for nature, unselfish, committed, empathetic / 2. romantic, physical, sexual, passionate / 3. kind, encouraging, deep friendship, caring, fond, understanding / 4. for family, for nation, protective, unconditional)

ANATOLIAN

Hittite (extinct)

assiya-

ARMENIAN

Western Armenian

sirel ← O.Arm. sirem

Eastern Armenian

sirel ← O.Arm. sirem

ALBANIAN

Albanian

dua ← O.Alb. duo

IRANIAN

Persian

mohabbat dâdan ← Av. zaoš-, kan-

Kurdish

evindar ← Av. zaoš-, kan-

INDIC
NORTHERN INDIC

Nepali

prem garnu ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

WESTERN INDIC

Marathi

prem karṇeṅ ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

CENTRAL INDIC

Hindi

muhabbat karnā ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

Urdu

muhabbat karnā ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

EASTERN INDIC

Bengali

porajito hōi ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

SOUTHERN INDIC

Sinhalese

ālaya karanawā ← Pa. piyāyati ← Skt. prī-, kam-

SLAVIC
WEST SLAVIC

Kashubian

   . . . .

Polish

kochać, ljubić ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Lower Sorbian

lubowaś ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Upper Sorbian

lubować ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Czech

milovat ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Slovak

milovat’ ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

SOUTH SLAVIC

Slovene

ljubiti ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Croatian

voljeti, ljubiti ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Bosnian

voljeti, ljubiti ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Serbian

voleti, ljubiti ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Macedonian

saka, ljubi ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Bulgarian

obīčam ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

EAST SLAVIC

Russian

ljubīt’ ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Belarusian

ljubic’ ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

Ukrainian

ljubuiti ← O.C.S. ljubiti ← Lt.I.E. *leubh- ← Pr.I.E. *lewb^h-

BALTIC

Lithuanian

mylėti

Latvian

milēt

FINNO-UGRIAN

Estonian

armastama ← Pr.Fi. *armastadak

Finnish

rakastaa, armastaa ← Pr.Fi. *armastadak

Sami

ráhkistit

Erzya

večkems

Komi (Zyrian)

   . . . .

Mansi (Vogul)

   . . . .

Hungarian

szeretni

BASQUE

Basque

maitatu

SEMITIC

Arabic

yuḥebbu

Hebrew

’ahav ← O.T.H. āhaḅ

Aramaic

makhube ← N.T.A. ’āḥāḅ

Babylonian (extinct)

râmu

TURKIC

Turkish

sevmek

Azerbaijani

sevmək

My other websites:
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New Nutshell
Christianity in a Nutshell

My wife's websites:
Meaning of Life
Bits

I’d like to share with you why I think Christianity is such a great religion. A person who lives to 70 has a life of 613,200 hours. Christianity promises that the next life will be in ideal surroundings with friendly, happy people. There will be perfect health and no crime. Of course you’re free to reject the offer of eternal life.

Isn’t it worth, though, spending at least part of one of your 613,200 hours just checking it out. Then if you reject it, at least you’ll have made an informed decision. Is it just possible that your world view could be wrong and Christianity might actually be true? Where would that leave you if you choose to turn down the offer of heaven?

Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen To Good People?
Your Race, Gender And Sexuality Are Irrelevant To God - True or False?
Near Death Experiences
Objections To Christianity
Some Parables and Sayings of Jesus
God Is Uncaring - True or False?
Pain and Injustice In The World
It’s Ok to Blame God For Floods and Famines - True or False?
My Favourite Bible Quotations
The Universe Was Created In Six Days - True or False?
What Makes Christianity Unique Among Religions?
Did God Betray My Trust?
God Allows So Much Suffering In The World - True or False?
The Easy Way To Pray
Who Jesus Is
The Appeal Of Being A Christian
What Faith Is
Does the God of Love Really Send People to Hell?
Did Adam and Eve Really Exist?

Quotations

These are some of my wife's thoughts and ideas:

Believe and Receive
Be Thankful
Change of Heart
Defining Hope
Endless Joy
Fork in the Road
God is not Deaf
Hurting World
Into the Light
Just say Yes
New Life
Put Him First
Ready for Anything
Salvation
Sheep and Lambs
The Best Gift
The Centre
The Gospels
The Reality of Jesus

What's Missing?

The LORD doesn�t see things the way you see them. People judge
by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.

1 Samuel 16,7

ABBREVIATIONS

Anc.Gk. = Ancient Greek (700 B.C. - 450 A.D.)
Av. = Avestan (600 B.C. - 400 B.C.)
E.Mod.W. = Early Modern Welsh (1450 - 1600)
K.K. = Kernewek Kemmyn - "Common Cornish" (1986 - 2008)
Lat. = Latin (75 B.C. - 250 A.D.)
Lt.C. = Late Cornish (1600 - 1891)
Lt.I.E. = Late Indo-European (2,500 B.C. - 2,000 B.C.)
M.Br. = Middle Breton (1100 - 1650)
M.C. = Middle Cornish (1200 - 1600)
M.Du. = Middle Dutch (1150 - 1500)
M.Eng. = Middle English (1150 - 1450)
M.H.G. = Middle High German (1050 - 1350)
M.L.G. = Middle Low German (1200 - 1600)
M.Sc. = Middle Scots (1450 - 1700)
M.W. = Middle Welsh (1200 - 1450)
N.T.A. = New Testament Aramaic (1st century A.D.)
O.Alb. = Old Albanian (1284 - 1908)
O.Arm. = Old Armenian (450 - 1050)
O.Br. = Old Breton (800 - 1100)
O.C. = Old Cornish (850- 1200)
O.C.S. = Old Church Slavonic (850 - 1050)
O.Cat. = Old Catalan (850 - 1550)
O.Dan. = Old Danish (1100 - 1536)
O.Du. = Old Dutch (450 - 1150)
O.Eng. = Old English (650 - 1150)
O.Fr. = Old French (750 - 1350)
O.Fris. = Old Frisian (750 - 1500)
O.Gal./Port. = Old Galician / Old Portuguese (775 - 1050)
O.H.G. = Old High German (400 - 1050)
O.Ir. = Old Irish (550 - 950)
O.It. = Old Italian (1150 - 1350)
O.N. = Old Norse (750 - 1350)
O.N.F. = Old Norman French (1000 - 1450)
O.Nth. = Old Northumbrian (650 - 1000)
O.Pol. = Old Polish (950 - 1550)
O.Pr. = Old Provençal (900 - 1400)
O.Sax. = Old Saxon (750 - 1150)
O.Sp. = Old Spanish (950 - 1400)
O.Sw. = Old Swedish (1225 - 1526)
O.T.H. = Old Testament Hebrew (1200 B.C. - 200 A.D.)
O.W. = Old Welsh (800 - 1200)
Pa. = Pali (50 B.C. - 400 A.D.)
Pr.Alb. = Proto-Albanian
Pr.Arm. = Proto-Armenian (c.1200 B.C.)
Pr.Brit. = Proto-Brittonic (500 B.C. - 550 A.D.)
Pr.Clt. = Proto-Celtic (1300 B.C. - 800 B.C.)
Pr.Fi. = Proto-Finnic (1200 B.C. - 800 A.D.)
Pr.Gmc. = Proto-Germanic (500 B.C. - 150 A.D.)
Pr.I.E. = Proto-Indo-European (4,500 B.C. - 2,500 B.C.)
Pr.It. = Proto-Italic (1,700 B.C. - 700 B.C.)
Pr.Sem. = Proto-Semitic (3,500 B.C.)
Pr.Ug. = Proto-Ugric (2000 B.C. - 1000 B.C.)
Pr.Ur. = Proto-Uralic (pre-2000 B.C.)
Pr.W.Gmc. = Proto-West Germanic (150 A.D. - 400 A.D.)
Rec.Br. = Recent Breton (pre-1941)
Rec.Dan. = Recent Danish (pre-1948)
Rec.Ir. = Recent Irish (pre-1947)
Skt. = Sanskrit (1,500 B.C. - 500 B.C.)
Uni.C. = Unified Cornish (1929 - 2008)
V.Lat. = Vulgar Latin (50 B.C. - 650 A.D.)

* = hypothetical, reconstructed

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