Mensch

Forms

Mensch m (genitive Menschen, plural Menschen, diminutive Menschchen n or Menschlein n, feminine Mensch or Menschin)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German mensche, inherited from Old High German mennisco, mannisco, a noun use of the adjective mennisc (“human”), inherited from Proto-West Germanic *mannisk, inherited from Proto-Germanic *manniskaz (“human”).^[2][3][1] That adjective is derived from the word for “man” that is now Mann, in its old sense “human being”, with the suffix Proto-Germanic *-iskaz that is now -isch.^[2][3][4][1] It is found in Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌽𐌽𐌹𐍃𐌺𐍃 (mannisks), Old Norse mennskr, Old English mennisc and Old Saxon mennisk.^[2][4] Sanskrit मनुष्य (manuṣyà, “human”) is formed in the same way.^[2]

Only German, Dutch and Frisian made a noun of the adjective: mennisko, Old Frisian manniska and Dutch mens.^[2][5][6] Danish menneske is a borrowing from German.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old High German mennisco, older mannisco, is recorded from the third quarter of the 8th century in glosses, and then in Otfrid, Notker and Williram, meaning “human being, person”.^[7][8][9] The Old Saxon Heliand has the plural in the phrase menniskono barn “children of men”.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In Old High German the word was only masculine.^[6] In Middle High German a neuter daʒ mensche appeared beside it, at first with the same general meaning.^[3][10] From the 15th century it often meant a woman, especially a maidservant.^[3][11] It formed the plural Menscher in the 17th century and has been used only disparagingly since the 18th.^[3][11][2] Regionally in the south it came to mean “girl” on the one hand and a contemptuous term for a woman on the other.^[2]

Luther's Bible gave many lasting phrases: der Mensch lebt nicht vom Brot allein and den alten Menschen ausziehen, and the proverb der Mensch denkt, Gott lenkt goes back to Proverbs 16:9.^[11] Compounds such as Menschenfeind (16th century) and Menschenfresser (17th century) are loan translations of Greek and Latin words;^[3] Menschenrechte “human rights” are recorded from 1777 and became a political watchword through the American and French declarations.^[3]

Timeline

• 3rd quarter of the 8th century – Old High German mennisco appears in glosses.^[7]
• 15th century – The neuter das Mensch is used for a woman or maidservant.^[3][11]
• 16th century – Menschenfeind is formed after Greek-Latin misanthropus.^[3]
• 17th century – The plural Menscher is recorded.^[3]
• 1777 – Menschenrechte “human rights” is first recorded.^[3]
• 18th century – The neuter Mensch becomes disparaging.^[3][11]

Meanings

Noun

1. A human being, the living being able to think and speak, as opposed to animals: Mensch und Tier.^[12][1]
2. A human individual, a person: Sie ist auch nur ein Mensch.^[12][1]
3. A particular person with certain qualities: ein fröhlicher Mensch.^[12]
4. (neuter, regional, especially southern Germany and Austria, often derogatory) A woman, a girl.^[1][2]

Interjection

1. (colloquial) Expressing surprise, admiration or annoyance: Mensch, ist das kalt!^[1]

Word family

• menschlich
• Menschheit
• Menschlichkeit
• Menschentum
• Unmensch
• Übermensch
• Menschenfeind
• Menschenfresser
• menschenmöglich
• Menschenrecht
• entmenschen

Related words

• Mann
• English man

Usage notes

Kein Mensch mehr sein (colloquial) is to be completely worn out, and ein Mensch von Fleisch und Blut is a real, living person.^[12] The neuter das Mensch has the plural Menscher;^[1][3] Wiktionary notes that the idea of its being a corruption of Mädchen is a folk etymology.^[1][3]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 616
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
4. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill
5. ^ Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 548
6. ^ a b c d Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 12, 2021
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
8. ^ Schützeichel, Rudolf (2012), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 7th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 220
9. ^ Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch (1952–), founded by Elisabeth Karg-Gasterstädt and Theodor Frings, Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag / De Gruyter; online awb.saw-leipzig.de
10. ^ Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 12, 2033
11. ^ a b c d e Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
12. ^ a b c d Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag