Etymograph

English

elne

Elne comes from Middle English elne ‘power, strength, might’, from Proto-West Germanic *alljan ‘zeal’, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *aljaną.

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aljaną1reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*alljan1‘zeal’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ellen2‘zeal, strength, power, vigor, valor, courage, fortitude, strife, contention’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500elne2‘power, strength, might’
  5. Englishtodayelne2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old English ellen
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English elne

Lineage

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*aljanąWiktionary, Old English ellenreconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*alljanWiktionary, Old English ellen‘zeal’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ellenWiktionary, English elne‘zeal, strength, power, vigor, valor, courage, fortitude, strife, contention’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500elneWiktionary, English elne‘power, strength, might’
  5. EnglishtodayelneWiktionary, English elne

Linked words

through Middle English elne ‘power, strength, might’

ellen

Today it means

noun —

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “elne”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Old English ellen. 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-Germanic *aljaną / elne

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