From: "Piotr Gasiorowski" <
gpiotr@...>
The PIE word from which "ford" derives, *prtu-, is related to *per-
'(go) through' (and so to Latin porta as well). Slavic *brod-U is
from the old Slavic *bred- 'wade, make one's way arduously'.
But as a consolation prize for Thorsten's search you could, perhaps,
offer him another kind of Polish "ford"? If I am not mistaken (with
that old Brueckner anything's possible), "furta" and "furtka"
("gate", little gate) is related to PIE *per- via PTeut *prtu-s and
Latin porta. So, the Polish equivalent of English ford (and
Norwegian fjord) is "furt/a/ka".
English "fare" in its archaic sense of travelling (or even dying) is
another interesting cognate.
E&OE
Stefan