SILVER

This English word is most probably of Corded Ware Culture origin as it appears mostly in a Germanic and Balto-Slavic group.

There is also a possibility of Old Europe / Neolithic Farmer origin as in Basque silver is "zilar, zilhar".

"To argue" means "to make something clear", "to make something white", "to put some shining on" and of course "to fight over an explanation or clarification". It is like that, because Latin "arguō" ("to make clear") is connected to Latin word for silver "argentum". Even the name of the country of Argentina means "The land of silver".

Notice Hittite "ḫarkiš, ḫarkaiš" meaning "white, bright", Tocharian A "ārki" and Tocharian B "ārkwi" both meaning "white".

Could then Ancient Greek "ἀρκτικός (arktikós)" meaning "Northern" and "of the Great Bear", from "ἄρκτος (árktos)" meaning "bear, Ursa Major" be describing a land of white polar bears? A land of bright white snow blinding to one's eyes.

Corded Ware Culture

SIL-

English: silver

Middle English: silver

Scots: silver

Old Dutch: silver

Middle Dutch: silver

German Low German: Silver

Afrikaans: silwer

Pennsylvania German: Silwer

Dutch: zilver

Vilamovian: zyłwer

Elfdalian: silver

Old Swedish: silver, sylver

Swedish: silver

Faroese: silvur

Old Norse: silfr, sylfr

Icelandic: silfur

Celtiberian: silabur

Old High German: silbar, silabar

Middle High German: silber

German: Silber

Mòcheno: silber

Old Danish: silf, sylf, sølf

Old Saxon: siluvar

Gothic: 𐍃𐌹𐌻𐌿𐌱𐍂 (silubr)

Crimean Gothic: siluir

Scots: siller

---? Basque: zilar, zilhar

SID-

Lithuanian: sidãbras

Latvian: sidrabs

SIB-

Old Novgorodian: сьбро (sĭbro)

SIR-

Old Prussian: sirablan, siraplis

Old Church Slavonic: сьрєбро ⱄⱐⱃⰵⰱⱃⱁ (sĭrebro)

East Slavic: сьребро (sĭrebro)

SOL-

Norwegian: sølv

Danish: sølv

Westrobothnian: sölv

Scanian: sølver

Old Swedish: sølver

SUL-

Middle English: sulver

West Frisian: sulver

Gutnish: sylvar

Middle Low German: sulver

German Low German: Sülver

SUR-

Old Church Slavonic: сърєбро ⱄⱏⱃⰵⰱⱃⱁ (sŭrebro)

SUD-

Latvian: sudrabs

SE-

Old English: seolofor, seolfor

Middle English: seolver

Middle English: selver

Old Frisian: selover, selver

East Frisian: Selwer

Saterland Frisian: Säälwer

Middle Low German: selver

Plautdietsch: Selwa

Luxembourgish: Sëlwer

Westrobothnian: selv

East Slavic: серебро (serebro)

Russian: серебро́ (serebró)

Ukrainian: серебро́ (serebró)

Belarusian: серабро́ (sjerabró)

SL-

Upper Sorbian: slěbro

Lower Sorbian: slobro, slabro

SRE-

Bulgarian: сребро́ (srebró)

Russian: сребро́ (srebró)

Macedonian: сребро (srebro)

Serbo-Croatian: срѐбро, srèbro

Slovene: srebrọ̑

Old Polish: śrebro, śrzebro, strzebro, jrzebro

Polish: srebro

Belarusian: срэ́бра (srébra)

Polabian: srebrǘ

Polabian Drevani: szrebry

SRI-

Ukrainian: срі́бло (sríblo)

STR-

Czech: stříbro

Silesian: střibuo

Slovak: striebro

Rusyn: стрі́бро (stríbro)

Argentum

AK-

Mycenaean Greek: a-ku-ro

ARG-

Latin: arguō ("to make clear")

Ancient Greek: ἀργός (argós) ("white, bright")

Ancient Greek: ἄργυρος (árguros)

Greek: άργυρος (árgyros)

Latin: argentum

Corsican: argentu

Romanian: argint

Italian: argento, ariento

Ligurian: argénto

Old French: argent

Middle French: argent

French: argent

Middle English: argent

English: argent

Old Occitan: argent

Catalan: argent

Occitan: argent

Albanian: argjend

Piedmontese: argent

Romansch: argient, argien

Sardinian: arghentu

Sicilian: argentu

---> Malay: argentum

Portuguese: argento

Spanish: argento

Old Breton: argant

Cornish: argans

Old Welsh: argant

Old Irish: argat

Irish: airgead

Scottish Gaelic: airgead

Manx: argid

Gaulish: arganto-

Norman: argent, ergent, ardjã

ARK-

Hittite: ḫarkiš, ḫarkaiš ("white, bright")

Tocharian A: ārki ("white")

Tocharian B: ārkwi ("white")

Faliscan: 𐌀𐌓𐌂𐌄𐌍𐌕𐌄𐌋𐌏𐌌 (arcentelom)

Old Armenian: արծաթ (arcatʿ)

Armenian: արծաթ (arcatʿ)

Celtiberian: arkanta, arkato-

Venetian: arxento

Galician: arxento

Middle Breton: archant

Breton: arc'hant

Aragonese: archent

ARZ-

Ossetian: ӕрзӕ́т (ærzǽt)

Persian: ارزیز‎ (arziz)

Dalmatian: arziant

Aromanian: arzintu

Lombard: arzent

ARI-

Middle Welsh: ariant

Welsh: arian

Friulian: arint

ARD-

Walloon: ardjint

Old Persian: 𐎠𐎼𐎭𐎫 (a-r-d-t /ardata/)

Hindi: अर्जुन (arjun)

Sanskrit: अर्जुन (árjuna)

RAJ-

Sanskrit: रजत (rajatá)

Hindi: रजत (rajata)

Pali: rajata

ARE-

Old Portuguese: arento

Old Spanish: arento

AL-

Gallurese: algentu

Persian: آلی‎ (ālī)

ARA-

Avestan: ərəzata

Oscan: 𐌀𐌓𐌀𐌂𐌄𐌕𐌖𐌃 (aragetud)

Article published on the 30th of October 2018.