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Etymology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Etymology
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Etymologyisthestudyofthehistoryofwords,theirorigins,andhowtheirformandmeaninghave
changedovertime.Byextension,theterm"theetymology(ofaword)"meanstheoriginoftheparticular
word.
Foralanguagewithalongwrittenhistory,etymologistsmakeuseoftextsintheselanguagesandtexts
aboutthelanguagestogatherknowledgeabouthowwordswereusedduringearlierperiodsoftheir
historyandwhentheyenteredthelanguagesinquestion.Etymologistsalsoapplythemethodsof
comparativelinguisticstoreconstructinformationaboutlanguagesthataretoooldforanydirect
informationtobeavailable.
Byanalyzingrelatedlanguageswithatechniqueknownasthecomparativemethod,linguistscanmake
inferencesabouttheirsharedparentlanguageanditsvocabulary.Inthisway,wordrootshavebeen
foundthatcanbetracedallthewaybacktotheoriginof,forinstance,theIndoEuropeanlanguage
family.
Eventhoughetymologicalresearchoriginallygrewfromthephilologicaltradition,currentlymuch
etymologicalresearchisdoneonlanguagefamilieswherelittleornoearlydocumentationisavailable,
suchasUralicandAustronesian.
ThewordetymologyisderivedfromtheGreekword,etymologia,itselffrom,
etymon,meaning"truesense",andthesuffixlogia,denoting"thestudyof".[1][2]Inlinguistics,theterm
etymonisusedtorefertoawordormorphemefromwhichalaterwordisderived.Forexample,Latin
candidus,whichmeans"white",istheetymonofEnglishcandid.

Contents
1 Methods
2 Typesofwordorigins
3 Englishlanguage
3.1 Assimilationofforeignwords
4 History
4.1 AncientSanskrit
4.2 AncientGrecoRoman
4.3 Medieval
4.4 Modernera
5 Seealso
6 Notes
7 References
8 Externallinks

Methods
Etymologistsapplyanumberofmethodstostudytheoriginsofwords,someofwhichare:
Philologicalresearch.Changesintheformandmeaningofthewordcanbetracedwiththeaidof
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oldertexts,ifsuchareavailable.
Makinguseofdialectologicaldata.Theformormeaningofthewordmightshowvariations
betweendialects,whichmayyieldcluesaboutitsearlierhistory.
Thecomparativemethod.Byasystematiccomparisonofrelatedlanguages,etymologistsmay
oftenbeabletodetectwhichwordsderivefromtheircommonancestorlanguageandwhichwere
insteadlaterborrowedfromanotherlanguage.
Thestudyofsemanticchange.Etymologistsmustoftenmakehypothesesaboutchangesinthe
meaningofparticularwords.Suchhypothesesaretestedagainstthegeneralknowledgeof
semanticshifts.Forexample,theassumptionofaparticularchangeofmeaningmaybe
substantiatedbyshowingthatthesametypeofchangehasoccurredinotherlanguagesaswell.

Typesofwordorigins
Etymologicaltheoryrecognizesthatwordsoriginatethroughalimitednumberofbasicmechanisms,the
mostimportantofwhicharelanguagechange,borrowing(i.e.,theadoptionof"loanwords"fromother
languages)wordformationsuchasderivationandcompoundingandonomatopoeiaandsound
symbolism,(i.e.,thecreationofimitativewordssuchas"click"or"grunt").
Whiletheoriginofnewlyemergedwordsisoftenmoreorlesstransparent,ittendstobecomeobscured
throughtimeduetosoundchangeorsemanticchange.Duetosoundchange,itisnotreadilyobvious
thattheEnglishwordsetisrelatedtothewordsit(theformerisoriginallyacausativeformationofthe
latter).Itisevenlessobviousthatblessisrelatedtoblood(theformerwasoriginallyaderivativewith
themeaning"tomarkwithblood").
Semanticchangemayalsooccur.Forexample,theEnglishwordbeadoriginallymeant"prayer".It
acquireditsmodernmeaningthroughthepracticeofcountingtherecitationofprayersbyusingbeads.

Englishlanguage
EnglishderivesfromOldEnglish(sometimesreferredtoasAngloSaxon),aWestGermanicvariety,
althoughitscurrentvocabularyincludeswordsfrommanylanguages.[3]TheOldEnglishrootsmaybe
seeninthesimilarityofnumbersinEnglishandGerman,particularlyseven/sieben,eight/acht,
nine/neun,andten/zehn.Pronounsarealsocognate:I/mine/meich/mein/michthou/thine/theeand
du/dein/dichwe/wirus/unsshe/sieyour/ihr.However,languagechangehaserodedmanygrammatical
elements,suchasthenouncasesystem,whichisgreatlysimplifiedinmodernEnglish,andcertain
elementsofvocabulary,someofwhichareborrowedfromFrench.Althoughmanyofthewordsinthe
EnglishlexiconcomefromRomancelanguages,mostofthecommonwordsusedinEnglishareof
Germanicorigin.
WhentheNormansconqueredEnglandin1066(seeNormanConquest),theybroughttheirNorman
languagewiththem.DuringtheAngloNormanperiod,whichunitedinsularandcontinentalterritories,
therulingclassspokeAngloNorman,whilethepeasantsspokethevernacularEnglishofthetime.
AngloNormanwastheconduitfortheintroductionofFrenchintoEngland,aidedbythecirculationof
Langued'olliteraturefromFrance.
ThisledtomanypairedwordsofFrenchandEnglishorigin.Forexample,beefisrelated,through
borrowing,tomodernFrenchbuf,vealtoveau,porktoporc,andpoultrytopoulet.Allthesewords,
FrenchandEnglish,refertothemeatratherthantotheanimal.Wordsthatrefertofarmanimals,onthe
otherhand,tendtobecognatesofwordsinotherGermaniclanguages.Forexample,swine/Schwein,

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cow/Kuh,calf/Kalb,andsheep/Schaf.Thevariantusagehasbeenexplainedbythepropositionthatit
wastheNormanrulerswhomostlyatemeat(anexpensivecommodity)andtheAngloSaxonswho
farmedtheanimals.Thisexplanationhaspassedintocommonfolklorebuthasbeendisputed.

Assimilationofforeignwords
Englishhasprovedaccommodatingtowordsfrommanylanguages.Scientificterminology,forexample,
reliesheavilyonwordsofLatinandGreekorigin,butthereareagreatmanynonscientificexamples.
Spanishhascontributedmanywords,particularlyinthesouthwesternUnitedStates.Examplesinclude
buckaroo,alligator,rodeo,savvy,andstates'namessuchasColoradoandFlorida.Albino,palaver,
lingo,verandah,andcoconutfromPortuguesedivaandprimadonnafromItalian.
Smorgasbord,slalom,andombudsmanarefromSwedish,NorwegianandDanishsaunafromFinnish
adobe,alcohol,algebra,algorithm,apricot,assassin,caliber,cotton,hazard,jacket,jar,julep,mosque,
Muslim,orange,safari,sofa,andzerofromArabic(oftenviaotherlanguages)behemoth,hallelujah,
Satan,jubilee,andrabbifromHebrewtaiga,steppe,Bolshevik,andsputnikfromRussianbrahman,
guru,karma,andpunditfromSanskrithoncho,sushi,andtsunamifromJapanesedimsum,gungho,
kowtow,kumquat,ketchup,andtyphoonfromCantonese.
KampongandamokarefromMalayandboondocksfromtheTagalogwordforhillsormountains,
bundok.Surprisinglyfewloanwords,however,comefromotherlanguagesnativetotheBritishIsles.
Thosethatexistincludecoracle,cromlechand(probably)flannel,gullandpenguinfromWelshgalore
andwhiskyfromScottishGaelicphoney,trousers,andToryfromIrishandeerieandcannyfromScots
(orrelatedNorthernEnglishdialects).
ManyCanadianEnglishandAmericanEnglishwords(especiallybutnotexclusivelyplantandanimal
names)areloanwordsfromIndigenousAmericanlanguages,suchasbarbecue,bayou,chili,chipmunk,
hooch,hurricane,husky,mesquite,opossum,pecan,squash,toboggan,andtomato.
(Seealso"loanword.")

History
Thesearchformeaningfuloriginsforfamiliarorstrangewordsisfarolderthanthemodern
understandingoflinguisticevolutionandtherelationshipsoflanguages,whichbegannoearlierthanthe
18thcentury.FromAntiquitythroughthe17thcentury,fromPinitoPindartoSirThomasBrowne,
etymologyhadbeenaformofwittywordplay,inwhichthesupposedoriginsofwordswerechangedto
satisfycontemporaryrequirements.
TheGreekpoetPindar(borninapproximately522BCE)employedcreativeetymologiestoflatterhis
patrons.Plutarchemployedetymologiesinsecurelybasedonfanciedresemblancesinsounds.Isidoreof
Seville'sEtymologiaewasanencyclopedictracingof"firstthings"thatremaineduncriticallyinusein
Europeuntilthesixteenthcentury.Etymologicumgenuinumisagrammaticalencyclopediaeditedat
Constantinopleintheninthcentury,oneofseveralsimilarByzantineworks.Thefourteenthcentury
LegendaAureabeginseachvitaofasaintwithafancifulexcursusintheformofanetymology.

AncientSanskrit
TheSanskritlinguistsandgrammariansofancientIndiawerethefirsttomakeacomprehensiveanalysis
oflinguisticsandetymology.ThestudyofSanskritetymologyhasprovidedWesternscholarswiththe
basisofhistoricallinguisticsandmodernetymology.FourofthemostfamousSanskritlinguistsare:
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Yaska(c.6th5thcenturiesBCE)
Pini(c.520460BCE)
Ktyyana(2ndcenturyBCE)
Patajali(2ndcenturyBCE)
TheselinguistswerenottheearliestSanskritgrammarians,however.Theyfollowedalineofancient
grammariansofSanskritwholivedseveralcenturiesearlierlikeSakatayanaofwhomverylittleis
known.TheearliestofattestedetymologiescanbefoundinVedicliteratureinthephilosophical
explanationsoftheBrahmanas,Aranyakas,andUpanishads.
TheanalysesofSanskritgrammardonebythepreviouslymentionedlinguistsinvolvedextensivestudies
ontheetymology(calledNiruktaorVyutpattiinSanskrit)ofSanskritwords,becausetheancientIndo
Aryansconsideredsoundandspeechitselftobesacredand,forthem,thewordsofthesacredVedas
containeddeepencodingofthemysteriesofthesoulandGod.

AncientGrecoRoman
OneoftheearliestphilosophicaltextsoftheClassicalGreekperiodtoaddressetymologywasthe
SocraticdialogueCratylus(c.360BCE)byPlato.Duringmuchofthedialogue,Socratesmakesguesses
astotheoriginsofmanywords,includingthenamesofthegods.InhisOdesPindarspins
complimentaryetymologiestoflatterhispatrons.Plutarch(LifeofNumaPompilius)spinsanetymology
forpontifex("bridgebuilder"):
thepriests,calledPontifices....havethenameofPontificesfrompotens,powerful,because
theyattendtheserviceofthegods,whohavepowerandcommandoverall.Othersmakethe
wordrefertoexceptionsofimpossiblecasesthepriestsweretoperformalltheduties
possibletothemifanythinglaybeyondtheirpower,theexceptionwasnottobecavilled
at.Themostcommonopinionisthemostabsurd,whichderivesthiswordfrompons,and
assignstheprieststhetitleofbridgemakers.Thesacrificesperformedonthebridgewere
amongstthemostsacredandancient,andthekeepingandrepairingofthebridgeattached,
likeanyotherpublicsacredoffice,tothepriesthood.

Medieval
IsidoreofSevillecompiledavolumeofetymologiestoilluminatethetriumphofreligion.Eachsaint's
legendinJacobdeVoragine'sLegendaAureabeginswithanetymologicaldiscourseonthesaint'sname:
Lucyissaidoflight,andlightisbeautyinbeholding,afterthatS.Ambrosesaith:The
natureoflightissuch,sheisgraciousinbeholding,shespreadethoverallwithoutlying
down,shepassethingoingrightwithoutcrookingbyrightlonglineanditiswithout
dilationoftarrying,andthereforeitisshowedtheblessedLucyhathbeautyofvirginity
withoutanycorruptionessenceofcharitywithoutdisordinateloverightfulgoingand
devotiontoGod,withoutsquaringoutofthewayrightlonglinebycontinualworkwithout
negligenceofslothfultarrying.InLucyissaid,thewayoflight.[4]

Modernera

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Etymologyinthemodernsenseemergedinthelate18thcenturyEuropeanacademia,withinthecontext
ofthewider"AgeofEnlightenment,"althoughprecededby17thcenturypioneerssuchasMarcus
ZueriusvanBoxhorn,GerardusVossius,StephenSkinner,ElishaColes,andWilliamWotton.Thefirst
knownsystematicattempttoprovetherelationshipbetweentwolanguagesonthebasisofsimilarityof
grammarandlexiconwasmadein1770bytheHungarian,JnosSajnovics,whenheattemptedto
demonstratetherelationshipbetweenSamiandHungarian(workthatwaslaterextendedtothewhole
FinnoUgriclanguagefamilyin1799byhisfellowcountryman,SamuelGyarmathi).[5]
TheoriginofmodernhistoricallinguisticsisoftentracedbacktoSirWilliamJones,aWelshphilologist
livinginIndia,whoin1782observedthegeneticrelationshipbetweenSanskrit,GreekandLatin.Jones
publishedhisTheSanscritLanguagein1786,layingthefoundationforthefieldofIndoEuropean
linguistics.[6]
ThestudyofetymologyinGermanicphilologywasintroducedbyRasmusChristianRaskintheearly
19thcenturyandelevatedtoahighstandardwiththeGermanDictionaryoftheBrothersGrimm.The
successesofthecomparativeapproachculminatedintheNeogrammarianschoolofthelate19thcentury.
Stillinthe19thcentury,thephilosopherFriedrichNietzscheusedetymologicalstrategies(principally
andmostfamouslyinOntheGenealogyofMorals,butalsoelsewhere)toarguethatmoralvalueshave
definitehistorical(specifically,cultural)originswheremodulationsinmeaningregardingcertain
concepts(suchas"good"and"evil")showhowtheseideashadchangedovertimeaccordingtowhich
valuesystemappropriatedthem.Thisstrategygainedpopularityinthe20thcentury,andphilosophers,
suchasJacquesDerrida,haveusedetymologiestoindicateformermeaningsofwordstodecenterthe
"violenthierarchies"ofWesternphilosophy.

Seealso
BongoBongo
Cognate
Epeolatry
Etymologicaldictionary
Etymologicalfallacy
Falsecognate
Falseetymology
Folketymology
Historicallinguistics
Lexicology
Listsofetymologies
Malapropism
Medievaletymology

Medievaletymology
Neologism
Philology
Phonosemanticmatching
Protolanguage
Pseudoscientificlanguagecomparison
Semanticchange
Suppletion
Toponymy
WrterundSachen

Notes
1.Harper,Douglas."etymology".OnlineEtymologyDictionary.
2.(http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=e)tumologi/a),
(http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=e)/tumos).Liddell,
HenryGeorgeScott,RobertAGreekEnglishLexiconatthePerseusProject.
3.TheAmericaneducator:alibraryofuniversalknowledge...,Volume3ByCharlesSmithMorris,Amos
EmersonDolbear
4.MedievalSourcebook:TheGoldenLegend:Volume2(fulltext)(http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/goldenle
gend/GoldenLegendVolume2.htm#Lucy)
5.Szemernyi1996:6
6."SirWilliamJones,Britishphilologist".
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References
Skeat,WalterW.(2000).TheConciseDictionaryofEnglishEtymology,repred.,Diane.(ISBN0788191616)
Skeat,WalterW.(1963).AnEtymologicalDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage.(ISBN0198631049)
Snoj,Marko(2005).Etymology.In:Strazny,Philipp(ed.).EncyclopediaofLinguistics.NewYork:Fitzroy
Dearborn,vol.1:AL,pages304306.
C.T.Onions,G.W.S.Friedrichsen,R.W.Burchfield,(1966,reprinted1992,1994).OxfordDictionaryof
EnglishEtymology.(ISBN0198611129)
Liberman,Anatoly(2005)."WordOrigins...andHowWeKnowThem:EtymologyforEveryone."(ISBN019
5161475)
Zuckermann,Ghil'ad(2003).LanguageContactandLexicalEnrichmentinIsraeliHebrew.Palgrave
Macmillan.ISBN140391723X.
Hayakawa,Isamu,(2014).AHistoricalDictionaryofJapaneseWordsUsedinEnglish.RevisedandCorrected
Edition.Amazon(Tokyo:Texnai).

R.R.Carothers[2015/5775]

Externallinks
Etymology(https://www.dmoz.org/Reference/Dictionaries/
Etymology/)atDMOZ
Listofetymologiesofwordsin90+languages(http://ww
w.ezglot.com/etymologies.php)
OnlineEtymologyDictionary(http://etymonline.com/index.php)

Lookupetymologyin
Wiktionary,thefree
dictionary.

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