młot (Polish)
Where does "młot" come from?
The Polish word 'młot' descends from the Proto-Slavic *moltъ, which is rooted in a Proto-Indo-European term for crushing or grinding. It shares a common ancestry with words like 'mill' and the Latin 'malleus', reflecting the original sense of 'crushing out' associated with the tool. This evolution highlights how, across many languages, the term for a heavy instrument is intrinsically linked to the action of pulverizing material.
Full etymology tree
- młot (Polish), 'hammer (tool)'
- inherited *moltъ (Proto-Slavic), 'hammer'
- inherited *molh₂-to- (Proto-Indo-European)
- derived *melh₂- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to grind, to crush'
- inherited *molh₂-to- (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *moltъ (Proto-Slavic), 'hammer'
Ancestors
- *moltъ (Proto-Slavic)
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris