duif (Afrikaans)
Where does "duif" come from?
The Afrikaans noun 'duif', meaning pigeon or dove[1], descends through Dutch 'duif'[1] and Middle Dutch 'duve'[1][5] from Old Dutch 'dūva'[1][3][5]. This traces further back to Proto-Germanic '*dūbǭ'[1][2][6], which may originate from Proto-Indo-European '*dʰewbʰ-' meaning to whisk, smoke, or make obscure[4]. Alternatively, scholars suggest a derivation from Proto-Germanic '*dūbaną' meaning to dive or sink, likely reflecting the characteristic divebombing flight of the bird[4].
Open questions
- The derivation from Proto-Indo-European or from the Proto-Germanic verb for diving is considered a possible rather than certain origin. [4]
Full etymology tree
- duif (Afrikaans), 'pigeon, dove'
- inherited duif (Dutch), 'a pigeon, dove, bird of the family Columbidae'
- inherited duve (Middle Dutch), 'pigeon, dove'
- inherited duva (Old Dutch), 'dove, pigeon'
- inherited *dūbā (Proto-West Germanic), 'dove, pigeon'
- inherited *dūbǭ (Proto-Germanic), 'dove, pigeon'
- inherited *dūbā (Proto-West Germanic), 'dove, pigeon'
- inherited duva (Old Dutch), 'dove, pigeon'
- inherited duve (Middle Dutch), 'pigeon, dove'
- inherited duif (Dutch), 'a pigeon, dove, bird of the family Columbidae'
Ancestors
- duif (Dutch)
- duve (Middle Dutch)
- duva (Old Dutch)
- *dūbǭ (Proto-Germanic)
Sources
- duif (Afrikaans) - Wiktionary
- duif (Dutch) - Wiktionary
- duva (Old Dutch) - Wiktionary
- dūbǭ (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary
- duve (Middle Dutch) - Wiktionary
- dūbā (Proto-West Germanic) - Wiktionary
Updated October 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris