English
strawen
Strawen comes from Middle English strawen ‘made of straw’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *strew- ‘to spread, strew’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strew-1‘to spread, strew’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strawą2‘straw’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strau2‘straw’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150strēaw2‘straw’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500straw3
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500strawen4‘made of straw’
- Englishtodaystrawen4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *strawą
- 2 Wiktionary, Middle English straw
- 3 Wiktionary, Middle English strawen
- 4 Wiktionary, English strawen
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*strew-Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *strawą‘to spread, strew’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*strawąWiktionary, Middle English straw‘straw’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*strauWiktionary, Middle English straw‘straw’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150strēawWiktionary, Middle English straw‘straw’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500strawWiktionary, Middle English strawen
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500strawenWiktionary, English strawen‘made of straw’
- EnglishtodaystrawenWiktionary, English strawen
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *strew- ‘to spread, strew’
construction, structure, destroy, destruction, instrument, instructor, construct, destructive, strain, obstruction, instruct, obstruct, perestroika, construe, stripling, 12 more
through Proto-Germanic *strawą ‘straw’
Today it means
adj Made of straw.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “strawen”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *strawą, Middle English straw, Middle English strawen. 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 *strew- / strawen