schnell (German)
Where does "schnell" come from?
The German adjective 'schnell' traces back to the Proto-Germanic term '*snellaz', which carried the meanings of 'active', 'bold', and 'quick'. It passed through Proto-West Germanic as '*snel' before appearing in Old High German as 'snel', a word that described someone who was 'nimble', 'brave', 'quick', or 'lively'. This term persisted through Middle High German and remains in use today. While some linguists speculate that it might relate to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to cut' suggesting a progression from 'eager to cut' to 'brave in battle', others believe the word has an onomatopoeic origin. The term is part of a broader Germanic family, sharing common ancestry with the Dutch 'snel', Low German 'snell', and the English 'snell'.
Full etymology tree
- schnell (German), 'quick, fast'
- inherited snel (Middle High German)
- inherited snel (Old High German)
- inherited *snel (Proto-West Germanic)
- inherited *snellaz (Proto-Germanic), 'active, bold, quick'
- inherited *snel (Proto-West Germanic)
- inherited snel (Old High German)
- inherited snel (Middle High German)
Ancestors
- *snellaz (Proto-Germanic)
Cognates and doublets
- snel (Dutch)
- snell (English)
Descendants and derived words
- Schnelle (German)
- Schnelligkeit (German)
- vorschnell (German)
Updated August 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris