Proto-Indo-European Roots

Proto-Indo-European Roots

Root/Stem: *swesór-

Meaning: a sister

Cognates:

Hellenic Greek heor, eor (a daughter, a girl)

Italic Latin soror (a sister) < *sesor,
French soeur

Celtic Common Celtic *svesór, >
Old Irish siur (a sister), gen. sethar, Welsh chwaer, Breton c'hoar, Irish Gaelic deir-fiur (a sister), Scottish Gaelic piuthar, Old Cornish huir, Cornish hoer

Indic Sanskrit svasar- (a sister)

Dardic & Nuristani Khowar ispt-sar, ispu-sar (younger sister) ?

Iranian Avestan xwanghar- (a sister)

Anatolian

Tocharian Tocharian A s.ar, B s.er (a sister)

Armenian khoir (a sister), pl. khorkh

Germanic Common Germanic *swistér, *swistór, >
Gothic swistar, Old English sweostor , Old High German swester, Old Norse systir, Old Saxon & Old Swedish swiri (son of mother's sister);
German Schwester, Dutch zuster

Baltic Lithuanian sesuo, gen. seseris, Old Prussian swestro

Slavic Common Slavic *sestra, >
Ukrainian & Belorussian & Old Russian & Old Church Slavonic & Bulgarian & Serbo-Croatian & Slovene & Czech & Slovak & Russian sestra, Polish siostra, Upper Sorbian sotra

Notes: Though it is one of the typical r-stem nouns, denoting kinship, its case is quite peculiar. Its suffix *-sor can be found in many other words for feminine animate nouns, like Hittite nasu-sara (a queen), Sanskrit strí 'woman', etc. This suffix was here added to the word *swe- which is obviously the reflexive Indo-European pronoun.

*Root/Stem:*	*swesór-

*Meaning:*	a sister

*Cognates:*
Hellenic	Greek *heor, eor* (a daughter, a girl)
Italic	Latin *soror* (a sister) < sesor, French soeur*
Celtic	Common Celtic svesór, > Old Irish siur* (a sister), gen. *sethar,* Welsh *chwaer,* Breton *c'hoar,* Irish Gaelic *deir-fiur* (a sister), Scottish Gaelic *piuthar, Old Cornish huir, Cornish hoer*
Indic	Sanskrit *svasar-* (a sister)
Dardic & Nuristani	Khowar *ispt-sar, ispu-sar* (younger sister) ?
Iranian	Avestan *xwanghar-* (a sister)
Anatolian
Tocharian	Tocharian A *s.ar,* B *s.er* (a sister)
	Armenian *khoir* (a sister), pl. *khorkh*

Germanic	Common Germanic swistér, swistór, > Gothic *swistar, Old English sweostor* , Old High German *swester,* Old Norse *systir, Old Saxon & Old Swedish swiri* (son of mother's sister); German *Schwester, Dutch zuster*
Baltic	Lithuanian *sesuo,* gen. *seseris, Old Prussian swestro*
Slavic	Common Slavic sestra, > Ukrainian & Belorussian & Old Russian & Old Church Slavonic & Bulgarian & Serbo-Croatian & Slovene & Czech & Slovak & Russian sestra,* Polish *siostra, Upper Sorbian sotra*

*Notes:*	Though it is one of the typical r-stem nouns, denoting kinship, its case is quite peculiar. Its suffix **-sor* can be found in many other words for feminine animate nouns, like Hittite *nasu-sara* (a queen), Sanskrit *strí* 'woman', etc. This suffix was here added to the word *swe- which is obviously the reflexive Indo-European pronoun.