Etymologically
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Nähe

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈnɛːə/, /ˈneːə/[1]

Forms

Nähe f (genitive Nähe, no plural)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German næhe, inherited from Old High German nāhī, the abstract noun of nah (Old High German nāh).[1][2][3] The adjective goes back to Proto-Germanic *nēhwaz (“near”), also found in Old Saxon nāh, Old English nēah (whence English nigh), the Old Norse prefix ná- and Gothic 𐌽𐌴𐍈 (nēƕ), 𐌽𐌴𐍈𐌰 (nēƕa).[4][5][6]

Its origin is uncertain.[4][7] Pfeifer weighs a compound of an with the root of Auge, Proto-Indo-European *okʷ- (“to see”), meaning “looking towards”, against a link with Proto-Indo-European *enḱ- (“to reach”), the root of genug.[4] Kroonen takes it as a lengthened-grade adjective from the root “to reach”, which he writes *h₂neḱ-.[5] A connection with Lithuanian pranókti (“to overtake”) and Latvian nākt (“to come”) is difficult because of the vowel grade.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old High German nāhī is recorded from the 9th century in the Tatian, Otfrid and Notker, meaning “nearness, the near time, neighbourhood”.[8][9][10]

Semantic evolution

Middle High German already used in die næhe as a phrase for the adverb: komt uns der keiser in die næhe “if the emperor comes near us” (Lohengrin).[2][11] Luther's Bible pairs it with Ferne: beide in der nehe und ferne (Jeremiah 25:26), and Hans Sachs rhymes in der nech.[2] Early New High German used it for nearness in space, for an inner affinity with something, and for nearness in time, the near future or the recent past.[12]

The modern language uses it also for the closeness between people, as when Peter Handke writes of feeling die Nähe als einen Austausch von Zärtlichkeit “nearness as an exchange of tenderness”.[3][11] Compounds such as Bürgernähe use it for an institution's closeness to the people it serves.[1]

Timeline

  • 9th century – Old High German nāhī appears in the Tatian and Otfrid.[9][8]
  • 1460 – A Frankfurt record uses nêhe for a ferry.[13]
  • 16th century – Luther's Bible writes in der nehe und ferne.[2]
  • 1793 – Adelung defines it as the absence of any noticeable distance.[10]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Nearness, a short distance: aus der Nähe “from close up”;[3][1] in der Nähe “nearby”;[3][1] in der Nähe des Bahnhofs.[3][1]
  2. The vicinity, the area close by: Gibt es hier in der Nähe eine Apotheke?[1][3]
  3. Nearness in time of something coming: Die Prüfung ist in greifbare Nähe gerückt.[3][9]
  4. Closeness to someone, an intimate relationship: Er sucht ihre Nähe.[3]

Word family

  • Bürgernähe
  • nah
  • nahen
  • nähern
  • Nächster
  • nach
  • English nigh

Usage notes

A regional word Nähe (Hessian also das Näh) is a flat ferry boat, recorded from 1460 in Frankfurt and still known in Bavarian and Swabian; the Grimms connect it with Naue, not with nah.[13][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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. 13, 288
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  4. ^ a b c d Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
  5. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
  6. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
  7. ^ Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag
  8. ^ a b Schützeichel, Rudolf (2012), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 7th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 232
  9. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org
  10. ^ a b Adelung, Johann Christoph (1793–1801), Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart, 2nd ed., 4 vols., Leipzig: Breitkopf
  11. ^ a b Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
  12. ^ Anderson, Robert R.; Goebel, Ulrich; Reichmann, Oskar, eds. (1989–), Frühneuhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter; FWB-online, fwb-online.de
  13. ^ a b Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 13, 289