Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/kʷ-

This Proto-Indo-European entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Indo-European

Etymology

Theorized by some linguists, particularly proponents of the Indo-Uralic hypothesis, to be related to Proto-Uralic *ku-. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

Root

*kʷ-

1. The primary interrogative root.

Derived terms

Terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *kʷ- (13 c, 0 e)

• *kʷi-
  • *kʷís (“who? what?”)
• *kʷo-
  • *kʷo-dʰe / *kʷó-dʰi / *kʷo-dʰey
    • Proto-Balto-Slavic:
      • Proto-Slavic: *kъde (“where?”) (see there for further descendants)
    • Proto-Hellenic: *kʷótʰi
      • Ancient Greek: πόθῐ (póthi, “where? whither?”)
    • Proto-Italic:
      • Latin: (c)ubī (“where? what place?”) (see there for further descendants)
    • Proto-Indo-Iranian: *kudʰa
      • Proto-Iranian:
        • Avestan: 𐬐𐬎𐬛𐬁 (kudā, “where?”)
      • Proto-Indo-Aryan:
        • Sanskrit: कुह (kuha, “where?”)
  • *kʷo-h₁ (old ablative?)
    • Proto-Germanic: *hwō (“how”, instrumental) (see there for further descendants)
    • Proto-Hellenic: *kʷō
      • Ancient Greek: πω (pō), πώ (pṓ, “up to now, yet, ever”)

        Ionic Greek: κω (kō)

    • Proto-Italic: *kʷō
      • Latin: quō (“whereto; to what end, why”) (see there for further descendants)
  • *kʷo-r, *kʷóri
    • Proto-Germanic: *hwar (“where?”) (see there for further descendants)
    • Latin: cur (“why”), quirquir
    • Sanskrit: कर्हि (karhi, “when? what time?”)
    • ⇒ *kʷoryos
      • Proto-Germanic: *hwarjaz (“which of many?”) (see there for further descendants)
  • *kʷo-s (“which? what?”)
  • *kʷó-teros (“which of two?”)
• *kʷeh₂-
  • *kʷeh₂lis
    • Ancient Greek: πηλί-κος (pēlí-kos, “how great?”) (with adjectival -κός (-kós) extension)
    • Latin: quālis (“what kind?”) (see there for further descendants)
• *kʷú-só-
  • Proto-Albanian: *kusa
    • Albanian: kush (“who”)
  • Messapic: kos (“someone”)
  • Proto-Tocharian: *kuse
    • Tocharian A: kus
    • Tocharian B: kᵤse (“who”)
• >? *ku, *kū (“where”) (*kʷu not expected; see boukólos rule)
  • Proto-Albanian: *ku
    • Albanian: ku (“where”)
  • Proto-Indo-Iranian: *ku, *kū
    • Proto-Iranian: *kū
      • Avestan: 𐬐𐬏 (kū, “where”)
    • Proto-Indo-Aryan: *ku, *kū
      • Sanskrit: कु (ku), कू (kū, “where?”) (also कुत्र (kútra, “whereto”))
  • ⇒ *kur
    • Proto-Albanian: *kur
      • Albanian: kur (“when”)
    • Old Armenian: ուր (ur, “where”)
      • Armenian: ուր (ur, “where”)
    • Proto-Baltic: *kur
      • Latvian: kur (“where”)
      • Lithuanian: kur̃, kur (“where”)

• Unsorted formations:
  • Cretan Greek: ὀπυι (opui, “whither”)
  • Proto-Germanic: *hwilīkaz (“what kind?”) (see there for further descendants)