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Studie

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈʃtuːdi̯ə/[1]

Forms

Studie f (genitive Studie, plural Studien)[1]

Etymology

It is a back-formation from the plural of Studium, with a change of gender, at the end of the 18th century.[2][3][4] That noun is from Latin studium (“zeal, eager pursuit; study”), a noun of studeō (“to be eager for, apply oneself to”), the source of studieren, borrowed in the 13th century.[5][4][2] The plural was used in the sense of the results of studying a subject, as in compounds such as Studienreise, and its new singular took this concrete meaning.[2][4] Studio came by another route, from Italian studio.[5][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Deutsches Fremdwörterbuch's first record is of 1794, of an artist's studies from nature, still in the plural: zwei Studien nach der Natur for the head of Portia.[2] The Grimms' dictionary finds the singular Studie only from the beginning of the 19th century, first in the fine arts as a practice piece or model to be copied: Heinrich von Kleist wrote that a body could serve an artist as a Studie.[6]

Semantic evolution

In painting and drawing Studie came to mean a first attempt, a sketch for a larger work, and Gottfried Keller and Mörike use it of an artist's sketches;[6] Stifter treats it as an art form of its own.[6] In music it meant a study or étude, as in Robert Schumann.[6][2] Later came the scholarly and literary sense, a piece of preparatory work, which led to the modern main sense, a scholarly investigation of a particular question.[6][3] In chess a Studie is a composed endgame position.[2][3]

Timeline

  • 13th century – studieren is borrowed from Latin.[5]
  • 1794 – Studien nach der Natur, artist's studies.[2]
  • Early 19th century – The singular Studie appears, first in the fine arts.[6]
  • 19th century – Used in music of an étude.[6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A scholarly study, an investigation of a particular question: Eine neue Studie untersucht den Schlaf von Schulkindern.[3][1]
  2. A sketch or preparatory work for a larger work, especially of art: Der Maler fertigte mehrere Studien von Händen an.[3][7]
  3. (chess) A composed endgame.[3][2]

Word family

  • Vorstudie
  • Studium
  • studieren
  • Student
  • Studio
  • Etüde

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Schulz, Hans; Basler, Otto, et al. (1913–1988), Deutsches Fremdwörterbuch, 7 vols., Strasbourg / Berlin: Trübner / De Gruyter; 2nd ed., ed. Gerhard Strauß et al. (1995–), Berlin / New York: De Gruyter; via OWID, Leibniz-Institut für Deutsche Sprache
  3. ^ a b c d e f Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  4. ^ a b c d Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2007), 4th ed., Duden vol. 7, Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  5. ^ a b c Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 894
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 20, 271
  7. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org