Sitzung

Forms

Sitzung f (genitive Sitzung, plural Sitzungen)^[1]

Etymology

It is from German sitzen + -ung, recorded from the 15th century, at first in the sense “sitting down”.^[2][3][1] It is formed like English sitting.^[1]

The verb sitzen is Old High German sizzen, from Proto-Germanic *sitjaną (“to sit”), with a j-present also seen in Old Norse sitja and Old English sittan, while Gothic 𐍃𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (sitan) probably lost it.^[4][2][5] It goes back to Proto-Indo-European *sed- (“to sit”), the root of Latin sedeō, Ancient Greek ἕζομαι (hézomai), Lithuanian sėdėti and Old Church Slavonic сѣдѣти (sěděti).^[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Fifteenth-century glossaries give sitzung for Latin discubitus “reclining at table” and siczunge for sessio, and Middle Low German had sittinge.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Adelung explains Sitzung as a German word for the Latin-derived Session, a meeting of a court or council, so called because its members sit.^[7] Campe wanted to follow French usage and reserve Sitzung for the whole period during which a body deliberates, with Tagsitzung for a single meeting, but the distinction did not take hold.^[6] Schiller and Kleist use it of councils and courts, and it was also used jokingly of a long drinking session.^[6] In 1787 Heinse uses it for the sitting of a model for a portrait.^[6] Hebrew and Hungarian copied its meaning in words of their own.^[1]

Timeline

• 15th century – Sitzung is first recorded, meaning “sitting down”.^[2][3]
• 1787 – Heinse's Ardinghello uses the word for a portrait sitting.^[6]
• 1793 – Adelung defines it as the meeting of a court or council.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. A meeting of a council, committee or other body at which matters are discussed and decided: Der Gemeinderat tagt heute in öffentlicher Sitzung.^[3][1]
2. Short for Karnevalssitzung, a carnival evening with speeches and songs.^[3]
3. (colloquial, joking) A long stay on the toilet.^[3][8]
4. A sitting for a portrait.^[3][6]
5. A session of dental, psychotherapeutic or similar treatment.^[3][8]
6. A regular meeting of a group, such as a class or seminar.^[3][8]
7. (law) The oral hearing of a court.^[8]
8. (computing) A session, the connection of a client with a server.^[8]

Related words

• sitzen
• Sitz
• setzen

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
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 Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 852
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
6. ^ a b c d e f Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 16, 1304
7. ^ a b Adelung, Johann Christoph (1793–1801), Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart, 2nd ed., 4 vols., Leipzig: Breitkopf, p. 4, 116
8. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org