Etymograph

English

ellen

Ellen comes from Middle English elne ‘power, strength, might’, from Proto-West Germanic *alljan ‘zeal’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aljaną2‘zeal, power, courage’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*alljan2‘zeal’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150ellen2‘zeal, strength, power, vigor, valor, courage, fortitude, strife, contention’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500elne2‘power, strength, might’
  6. Englishtodayellen2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *aljaną
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English ellen

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *aljaną‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aljanąWiktionary, English ellen‘zeal, power, courage’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*alljanWiktionary, English ellen‘zeal’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150ellenWiktionary, English ellen‘zeal, strength, power, vigor, valor, courage, fortitude, strife, contention’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500elneWiktionary, English ellen‘power, strength, might’
  6. EnglishtodayellenWiktionary, English ellen

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’

as, all, old, else, adult, ultimate, ultra, alternate, el, alter, alien, altitude, alumni, qualification, outrage, alt, altar, ou, elder, element, alpine, abolish, alto, alias, alum, adolescent, 80 more

Today it means

noun Zeal.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “ellen”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Proto-Germanic *aljaną. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- / ellen

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