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  <teiHeader>
    <fileDesc>
      <titleStmt>
        <title type="main">Wurdahuzdą: Proto-Germanic dictionary — *swestēr</title>
        <author>Scott K. Shay</author>
      </titleStmt>
      <publicationStmt>
        <publisher>Wardja Press</publisher>
        <date when="2026-10-01"/>
        <idno type="URL">https://protogermanic.org/pgmc_swestēr</idno>
      </publicationStmt>
      <sourceDesc>
        <p>Single-entry extract from the dictionary. Cross-references to other entries point to their identifiers in the full dictionary.</p>
      </sourceDesc>
    </fileDesc>
  </teiHeader>
  <text>
    <body>
      <div type="dictionary">
        <entry xml:id="pgmc_swester" type="noun" corresp="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/swestēr">
          <form type="lemma">
            <orth>swestēr</orth>
            <pron notation="ipa">ˈswes.tɛːr</pron>
            <form type="runic">
              <orth>ᛊᚹᛖᛊᛏᛖᚱ</orth>
            </form>
          </form>
          <gramGrp>
            <pos>noun</pos>
            <gram type="gender">feminine</gram>
            <gram type="stem">r-stem</gram>
          </gramGrp>
          <sense n="1">
            <def>sister</def>
          </sense>
          <etym>
            <seg type="p">Remodeled based on analogy with *-tēr kinship words, from Proto-Indo-European *swésōr. This may well have been triggered by the insertion of *-t- in the cluster *-sr- that arose in several oblique case forms, a change which is also found in *þimstr (‘dark, dusky’) and *Austrǭ (‘springtime, Easter; a goddess of spring and fertility’) and is therefore likely a regular sound change in Proto-Germanic.</seg>
          </etym>
          <re type="paradigm">
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #nom">
              <orth>swestēr</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #nom">
              <orth>swistriz</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #acc">
              <orth>swesterų</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #acc">
              <orth>swestrunz</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #gen">
              <orth>swesturz</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #gen">
              <orth>swestrǫ̂</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #dat">
              <orth>swistri</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #dat">
              <orth>swestrumaz</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #instr">
              <orth>swestrē</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #instr">
              <orth>swestrumiz</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#sg #voc">
              <orth>swester</orth>
            </form>
            <form type="inflected" ana="#pl #voc">
              <orth>swistriz</orth>
            </form>
          </re>
          <re type="descendants">
            <list>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Dutch</lang>
                    <orth>*swestar, *sustar</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle Dutch</lang>
                      <orth>suster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Limburgish</lang>
                        <orth>zöster</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Dutch</lang>
                    <orth>*swestar, *sustar</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle Dutch</lang>
                      <orth>suster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Dutch</lang>
                        <orth>zuster</orth>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Afrikaans</lang>
                          <orth>suster</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Berbice Creole Dutch</lang>
                          <orth>sosro, sosoro</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Caribbean Hindustani</lang>
                          <orth>sester</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Caribbean Javanese</lang>
                          <orth>soster, sester</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Indonesian</lang>
                          <orth>suster</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Saramaccan</lang>
                          <orth>soosútu</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Skepi Creole Dutch</lang>
                          <orth>soster</orth>
                        </form>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old English</lang>
                    <orth>sweostor, swustor, swester, suoester, soester, swuster, swæstar, swestar, swystor, swystar, sweoster, swostur, swyster</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle English</lang>
                      <orth>suster, cyster, cystyr, scyster, sister, sistir, soster, souster, sustir, syster, systir, systyr, swuster, sussterr, zoster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Scots</lang>
                        <orth>sister, syster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Yola</lang>
                        <orth>zister</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old English</lang>
                    <orth>sweostor, swustor, swester, suoester, soester, swuster, swæstar, swestar, swystor, swystar, sweoster, swostur, swyster</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle English</lang>
                      <orth>suster, cyster, cystyr, scyster, sister, sistir, soster, souster, sustir, syster, systir, systyr, swuster, sussterr, zoster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>English</lang>
                        <orth>sister</orth>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Gulf Arabic</lang>
                          <orth>سِسْتَر (sistar)</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Japanese</lang>
                          <orth>シスター (shisutā)</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Korean</lang>
                          <orth>시스터 (siseuteo)</orth>
                        </form>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Frisian</lang>
                    <orth>swester</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Saterland Frisian</lang>
                      <orth>Suster</orth>
                    </form>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>West Frisian</lang>
                      <orth>suster</orth>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Frisian</lang>
                    <orth>swester</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>North Frisian</lang>
                      <orth>?</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Bökingharde</lang>
                        <orth>süster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Fering</lang>
                        <orth>saster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Halunder</lang>
                        <orth>Söster, Söl'ring: Sester</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Öömrang</lang>
                        <orth>saster</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old High German</lang>
                    <orth>swester</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle High German</lang>
                      <orth>swëster, suster, süster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Alemannic German</lang>
                        <orth>Schwöschter</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Bavarian</lang>
                        <orth>?</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Central Franconian</lang>
                        <orth>Sester, Söster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Hunsrik</lang>
                        <orth>Schwesder</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Luxembourgish</lang>
                        <orth>Sëschter</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Pennsylvania German</lang>
                        <orth>Schweschder</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Vilamovian</lang>
                        <orth>syster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Yiddish</lang>
                        <orth>שוועסטער (shvester)</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old High German</lang>
                    <orth>swester</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle High German</lang>
                      <orth>swëster, suster, süster</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>German</lang>
                        <orth>Schwester</orth>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Central Franconian</lang>
                          <orth>Schwester</orth>
                        </form>
                        <form type="descendant">
                          <lang>Luxembourgish</lang>
                          <orth>Schwëster</orth>
                        </form>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-West Germanic</lang>
                  <orth>*swester</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Saxon</lang>
                    <orth>swestar</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Middle Low German</lang>
                      <orth>süster, swester</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Low German</lang>
                        <orth>Swester, Süster</orth>
                      </form>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Plautdietsch</lang>
                        <orth>Sesta</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-Norse</lang>
                  <orth>ᛊᚹᛖᛊᛏᚨᚱ (swestar)</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Norse</lang>
                    <orth>systir</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Faroese</lang>
                      <orth>systir</orth>
                    </form>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Icelandic</lang>
                      <orth>systir</orth>
                    </form>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Norwegian Bokmål</lang>
                      <orth>søster</orth>
                    </form>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Norwegian Nynorsk</lang>
                      <orth>syster</orth>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-Norse</lang>
                  <orth>ᛊᚹᛖᛊᛏᚨᚱ (swestar)</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Norse</lang>
                    <orth>systir</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Old Danish</lang>
                      <orth>systær</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Danish</lang>
                        <orth>søster</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-Norse</lang>
                  <orth>ᛊᚹᛖᛊᛏᚨᚱ (swestar)</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Norse</lang>
                    <orth>systir</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Old Gutnish</lang>
                      <orth>systir</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Gutnish</lang>
                        <orth>systar</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
              <item>
                <form type="descendant">
                  <lang>Proto-Norse</lang>
                  <orth>ᛊᚹᛖᛊᛏᚨᚱ (swestar)</orth>
                  <form type="descendant">
                    <lang>Old Norse</lang>
                    <orth>systir</orth>
                    <form type="descendant">
                      <lang>Old Swedish</lang>
                      <orth>systir</orth>
                      <form type="descendant">
                        <lang>Swedish</lang>
                        <orth>syster</orth>
                      </form>
                    </form>
                  </form>
                </form>
              </item>
            </list>
          </re>
        </entry>
      </div>
    </body>
  </text>
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