synthwave (English)

Where does "synthwave" come from?

The English noun 'synthwave' is formed by combining the clipping 'synth', derived from 'synthesizer'[3], with the suffix '-wave'[1]. The latter element traces back through Middle English, Old English 'wǣg', and Proto-Germanic '*wēgaz' to the Proto-Indo-European root '*weǵʰ-' meaning 'to drag, carry'[2].

Open questions

The intermediate historical connection between the Proto-Indo-European root for transport and the Germanic word for wave relies on reconstructed forms. [2] [5]

Full etymology tree

synthwave (English), 'The electronic, synthesizer-based subgenre of new wave and darkwave music, in contrast to that based on guitars.'
- compound synth (English), 'A musical synthesizer.'
  - clipping synthesizer (English), 'An electronic musical instrument that creates its sounds with electronics and generally is played via a keyboard.'
- compound wave (English), 'A moving disturbance in the level of a body of liquid; an undulation.'
  - inherited *wave (Middle English), 'alternative form of waven'
    - inherited wæg (Old English), 'wave'
      - inherited *wāg (Proto-West Germanic), 'wave'
        inherited *wēgaz (Proto-Germanic), 'wave'
        inherited *weǵʰ- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to bring'
  - inherited wawe (Middle English), 'A wave (moving zone of water or other flowing substance; undulation)'
    - inherited wæg (Old English), 'wave'
      - inherited *wāg (Proto-West Germanic), 'wave'
        inherited *wēgaz (Proto-Germanic), 'wave'
        inherited *weǵʰ- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to bring'

Ancestors

synth (English)
wave (English)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris