Etymologically
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System

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Pronunciation

  • /zɪsˈteːm/, /zʏsˈteːm/[1]

Forms

System n (genitive Systemes or Systems, plural Systeme)[1] The first records have the plural Sistemata (mid-16th century), and a singular dative Systemate, formed from the plural, appears in the first half of the 18th century.[2][3] The Latin form systema was usual until about the middle of the 18th century, and System prevailed after 1750.[4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin systēma, from Ancient Greek σύστημα (sústēma, “a whole made up of parts”), from Ancient Greek συνίστημι (sunístēmi, “to put together”), a compound of Ancient Greek σύν (sún, “together”) and Ancient Greek ἵστημι (hístēmi, “to set, place”).[5][2][6][7] The Greek verb belongs to the same root as stehen.[6] The same borrowing is Dutch systeem, English system and French système.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Deutsches Fremdwörterbuch and Paul date the first record to 1548, in the plural.[8][3] According to Pfeifer it was first used of the order of the heavenly bodies, the structure of the universe.[2]

Semantic evolution

From the middle of the 18th century it was applied to the parts of the human body that work together (Nervensystem) and to the institutions of state and society.[2][3] In philosophy and science it meant an ordered body of doctrine from the first half of the 17th century, and in the second half of the 18th century it came to mean, more loosely, a plan or method.[2][3] The 19th century applied it to technology and transport (Eisenbahnsystem), and linguists used it from 1891.[3]

Adelung explains it as a connection of things of one kind and the order in which they are linked, citing the Ptolemaic and Copernican systems.[9] National Socialist usage made das System a contemptuous name for the Weimar Republic.[3]

Timeline

  • 1548 – First record, in the plural sistemata.[8][3]
  • 1709 – The sense “body of doctrine” in a quotation about ranking the theorems of a science.[3]
  • 1749 – Die gantze Welt ist ein System (Meier).[3]
  • After 1750 – The form System replaces Systema.[4]
  • 1891 – First record of the linguistic sense.[3]
  • 1932 – Das System is used of the Weimar Republic.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A scientific scheme; a body of doctrine: ein philosophisches System.[10][11]
  2. A principle of order or arrangement, a method: Sie sortiert ihre Bücher nach einem eigenen System.[10][1] Dahinter steckt System means that there is a deliberate plan behind it.[10]
  3. A form of political, economic or social organization; a regime: ein parlamentarisches System.[10][11]
  4. (natural sciences) A whole of interacting objects: ein ökologisches System.[10]
  5. A unit of technical installations or components with a common function: ein System von Rohren.[10][1]
  6. (linguistics, logic) A set of elements or signs with fixed relations or rules; also a set of lines for recording something: ein System von Koordinaten.[10]
  7. (biology) A classification of plants or animals by their relationship;[10][1] (geology) a period.[10][1]

Word family

  • systematisch
  • Systematik
  • systematisieren
  • Sonnensystem
  • Nervensystem

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e 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 i j k Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
  4. ^ a b Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 20, 1433
  5. ^ a b Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 902
  6. ^ a b Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 844
  7. ^ Wahrig-Burfeind, Renate, ed., Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch, Gütersloh / München: Wissen Media Verlag; online edition at wissen.de
  8. ^ a b 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
  9. ^ Adelung, Johann Christoph (1793–1801), Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart, 2nd ed., 4 vols., Leipzig: Breitkopf
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  11. ^ a b Duden. Das Fremdwörterbuch (2007), 9th ed., Duden vol. 5, Mannheim: Dudenverlag