From Old English 'beginnan,' literally 'to open up' — from *ginnaną (to gape, open), revealing that starting was conceived as breaking ground.
To perform or undergo the first part of an action or activity; to start.
From Old English 'beginnan' meaning 'to begin, attempt, undertake,' from Proto-Germanic *bi-ginnaną, a compound of *bi- (about, around) and *ginnaną (to open, gape). The original sense was likely 'to open up, to cut open' — beginning something was conceived as opening or cutting into it, the way a craftsman begins work by making the first cut. The root *ginnaną is related to 'yawn' and