devět (Czech)
Where does "devět" come from?
The Czech word 'devět' for the number nine has deep roots tracing back to the Proto-Slavic term '*devętь'. This ultimately descends from the ancient Proto-Indo-European root '*h₁néwn̥', a foundational ancestor shared by many languages today. Historians debate its precise origins, with theories ranging from a connection to the word for 'new' to a reference signifying 'lack' or 'without' in pre-historic numbering systems.
Full etymology tree
- devět (Czech), 'nine'
- inherited devět (Old Czech), 'nine'
- inherited *devętь (Proto-Slavic), 'nine'
- inherited *h₁néwn̥ (Proto-Indo-European), 'nine'
- influence *desętь (Proto-Slavic), 'ten'
- inherited *déḱm̥t (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *devętь (Proto-Slavic), 'nine'
- inherited devět (Old Czech), 'nine'
Ancestors
- devět (Old Czech)
- *devętь (Proto-Slavic)
- *h₁néwn̥ (Proto-Indo-European)
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris