sunu

Forms

sunu m (nominative plural suna) (strong u-stem)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-West Germanic *sunu, from Proto-Germanic *sunuz (“son”).^[1][2] The Proto-Germanic noun is found in all the old Germanic languages: Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌽𐌿𐍃 (sunus), Old Norse sonr, Old Frisian sunu, Old Saxon sunu and Old High German sunu.^[2][3][4]

It continues Proto-Indo-European *suHnús (“son”),^[2][1] which also gave Sanskrit सूनु (sūnú), Lithuanian sūnus and Proto-Slavic *synъ.^[3][1] Orel explains the short vowel of Germanic, against the long one of these forms, by a shortening before the accent.^[3] Holthausen and Köbler derive the noun from the root Proto-Indo-European *sewH- (“to give birth”) and compare Old Irish suth (“birth, fruit”).^[5][4]

It is a u-stem noun, with the ending -a in the genitive and dative singular and in the plural.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The word is first recorded in the Corpus Glossary, of the early ninth century, where faedran sunu “father's brother's son” glosses Latin “patruelis”, a cousin.^[7][8] The Vespasian Psalter gloss of the mid-ninth century has sunu min ðu earð “you are my son” for the Latin “filius meus es tu” of Psalm 2.^[9][8]

Semantic evolution

Its sense is “son”, also more widely “descendant”, and the young of animals.^[10][4] In religious texts it is the Son of God, Christ.^[10][11] With the genitive of the father's name it forms a by-name, Oddan sunu “Odda's son”,^[11] and in Beowulf it is mostly used so, as in sunu Healfdenes.^[12] Bosworth and Toller also record weak forms such as suna and sunan.^[13] Compounds name other kinsmen: brōþorsunu and sweostorsunu “nephew”, dohtorsunu “grandson”.^[14][15][16]

The word continued as Middle English sone,^[17] now English son.^[18]

Timeline

• s. ix¹ – faedran sunu for Latin “patruelis” in the Corpus Glossary.^[7][8]
• s. ix med. – sunu min ðu earð in the Vespasian Psalter gloss.^[9][8]
• 890×897 – in the Pastoral Care (Hatton 20).^[19][8]
• s. x/xi – sunu Healfdenes in the Beowulf manuscript.^[12]

Meanings

Noun

1. a son, a male child.^[13][10]
2. a descendant.^[10][4]
3. the Son, Christ.^[10][11]
4. the young of animals.^[10][4]

Word family

• brōþorsunu
• sweostorsunu
• dohtorsunu
• stēopsunu
• godsunu

Descendants

• Middle English sone (→ English son; Scots son)^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 492
3. ^ a b c Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 388
4. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. sunu
5. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. 330
6. ^ Hogg, Richard M.; Fulk, R. D. (2011), A Grammar of Old English, vol. 2: Morphology, Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, p. § 2.72
7. ^ a b Gneuss, Helmut; Lapidge, Michael (2014), Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts: A Bibliographical Handlist of Manuscripts and Manuscript Fragments Written or Owned in England up to 1100, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, p. 76
8. ^ a b c d e Healey, Antonette diPaolo; Price Wilkin, John; Xiang, Xin, eds. (2009), Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus, Toronto: Dictionary of Old English Project
9. ^ a b Gneuss, Helmut; Lapidge, Michael (2014), Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts: A Bibliographical Handlist of Manuscripts and Manuscript Fragments Written or Owned in England up to 1100, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, p. 329
10. ^ a b c d e f Clark Hall, J. R. (1960), A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, 4th ed., with a supplement by H. D. Meritt, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 327
11. ^ a b c Liebermann, F. (1906), Die Gesetze der Angelsachsen, vol. II.1: Wörterbuch, Halle: Niemeyer, p. 203
12. ^ a b Fulk, R. D.; Bjork, Robert E.; Niles, John D., eds. (2008), Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th ed., Toronto: University of Toronto Press (glossary), p. s.v. sunu
13. ^ a b Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement, p. 937
14. ^ Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement, p. Suppl. 107
15. ^ Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement, p. Suppl. 717
16. ^ Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement, p. Suppl. 154
17. ^ Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
18. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
19. ^ Gneuss, Helmut; Lapidge, Michael (2014), Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts: A Bibliographical Handlist of Manuscripts and Manuscript Fragments Written or Owned in England up to 1100, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, p. 499