From Middle High German brōt, from Old High German brōt (attested since the 8th century), from Proto-West Germanic *braud, from Proto-Germanic *braudą, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrew- (“to seethe, to boil”). Originally, the meaning of Brot was "what has been fermented, leaven" and may be a nominal derivative from Proto-Germanic *brewwaną (“to brew”) (whence German brauen). It replaced the older Laib (“loaf”) which was the more common term in Old High German (compare the use of hlāf and brēad in Old English).