English
grauwacke
Grauwacke comes from German grau ‘grey’, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰreh₁- ‘to glow, be visible’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰreh₁-1‘to glow, be visible’uncertain
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grēwaz2‘grey’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grāu3‘grey’reconstructed
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050grāo3‘grey’
- Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350grā3
- Germanc. 1650–presentgrau4‘grey’
- Germanc. 1650–presentGrauwacke4
- Englishtodaygrauwacke4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *grēwaz
- 2 Wiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *grāu
- 3 Wiktionary, German grau
- 4 Wiktionary, English grauwacke
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰreh₁-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *grēwaz‘to glow, be visible’uncertain
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*grēwazWiktionary, Proto-West Germanic *grāu‘grey’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*grāuWiktionary, German grau‘grey’reconstructed
- Old High Germanc. 750–1050grāoWiktionary, German grau‘grey’
- Middle High Germanc. 1050–1350grāWiktionary, German grau
- Germanc. 1650–presentgrauWiktionary, English grauwacke‘grey’
- Germanc. 1650–presentGrauwackeWiktionary, English grauwacke
- EnglishtodaygrauwackeWiktionary, English grauwacke
Linked words
through Proto-Germanic *grēwaz ‘grey’
through Proto-West Germanic *grāu ‘grey’
Today it means
noun Greywacke.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “grauwacke”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *grēwaz, Proto-West Germanic *grāu, German grau. 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 *ǵʰreh₁- / grauwacke