Datei

Forms

Datei f (genitive Datei, plural Dateien)^[1]

Etymology

It is from German Daten + -ei, formed on the model of Kartei “card index”.^[2][1][3] Wahrig calls it a loan formation after the card-index word, influenced by the word for data.^[4] The base noun is the plural of Datum.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Duden's etymological dictionary dates the word to the second half of the 20th century, meaning a collection of records and documents, especially in data processing.^[2] Wahrig likewise dates it to the 20th century, in the sense “collection of data stored by computer”.^[4]

Timeline

• Second half of the 20th century – The word is formed, especially for electronic data processing.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. (computing) A file, a set of data stored on a medium under one name: Sie speicherte die Datei auf dem Stick.^[3][1][6]
2. (official) A register, a collection of records ordered for keeping and looking up.^[3][1][7]

Related words

• Daten
• Kartei
• Datum

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2014), 5th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin / Mannheim / Zürich: Dudenverlag, p. 210
3. ^ a b c Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
4. ^ a b Wahrig-Burfeind, Renate, ed., Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch, Gütersloh / München: Wissen Media Verlag; online edition at wissen.de
5. ^ Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
6. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org
7. ^ Duden. Das Fremdwörterbuch (2007), 9th ed., Duden vol. 5, Mannheim: Dudenverlag