zes (Dutch)

Where does "zes" come from?

The Dutch word "zes" traces its origins back to the ancient Proto-Indo-European root "*swéḱs." Over several millennia, it evolved through Proto-Germanic and Proto-West Germanic as "*sehs," eventually passing into Old and Middle Dutch before reaching its modern form.

Full etymology tree

• zes (Dutch), 'six'
  • inherited ses (Middle Dutch), 'six'
    • inherited ses (Old Dutch)
      • inherited *sehs (Proto-West Germanic), 'six'
        • inherited *sehs (Proto-Germanic), 'six'
          • inherited *swéḱs (Proto-Indo-European), 'six'
            • inherited *wéḱs (Proto-Indo-European)

Ancestors

• ses (Middle Dutch)
• *sehs (Proto-West Germanic)
• *sehs (Proto-Germanic)
• *swéḱs (Proto-Indo-European)

Descendants and derived words

• ses (Afrikaans)
• zeshoek (Dutch)
• zesjescultuur (Dutch)
• zesling (Dutch)
• zääs (Jersey Dutch)

Updated July 2026

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