Etymograph

English

whence

Whence comes from Old English hwanon ‘where from’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kʷ- ‘the primary interrogative root’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷ-1‘the primary interrogative root’root named by Wiktionary
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwananā2reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150hwanon1‘where from’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500whennes1
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1611whence1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English whence
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old English hwanon
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Ieſus anſwered, and ſaid vnto them, Though I beare…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷ-Wiktionary, English whence‘the primary interrogative root’root named by Wiktionary
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hwananāWiktionary, Old English hwanonreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150hwanonWiktionary, English whence‘where from’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500whennesWiktionary, English whence
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1611whenceWiktionary, English whence. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Ieſus anſwered, and ſaid vnto them, Though I beare…”

Formed from when + -s

Proto-Indo-European *kʷ- ‘interrogative root’

…

Proto-West Germanic *hwan

Proto-West Germanic *hwannē

Old English hwonne

Middle English when(ne)

English when

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷ- ‘the primary interrogative root’

how, what, which, who, why, where, whether, whose, whom, neutral, quantity, ubiquitous, rapunzel, quip, ubiquity, whither, cadenza, 13 more

Today it means

adv From where; from which place or source.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “whence”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Old English hwanon. 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 *kʷ- / whence

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