Dutch word bekend comes from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₃-, Proto-Indo-European *ǵonh₁éyeti, and later Proto-Germanic *kanjaną (To beget, bring forth.)
| Dictionary entry | Language | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| *ǵenh₃- | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *ǵonh₁éyeti | Proto-Indo-European (ine-pro) | |
| *kunnaną | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | To know how, to be able to. To know, to be familiar with, to recognise. |
| *kanjaną | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | To beget, bring forth. |
| *kennen | Old Dutch (odt) | |
| kennen | Middle Dutch (dum) | To admit. To consider (to be). To establish (as fact). To know, to be familiar with. To recognise, to acknowledge (a fact). To recognise, to know who/what someone/something is. |
| kennen | Dutch (nld) | (auxiliary, colloquial, dialectal). (transitive) to know (a person, a thing), be acquainted with. |
| bekend | Dutch (nld) | (well-)known. Familiar, trusted. |