Veranstaltung

Forms

Veranstaltung f (genitive Veranstaltung, plural Veranstaltungen)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from German veranstalten + -ung.^[1][2][3] The verb, “to organise, stage”, is not found in the older language: it was formed in the first half of the 18th century and is first recorded by Frisch in 1741.^[4][5][6] It is a derivative with ver- of Anstalt (“arrangement, preparation”), and replaced the older anstellen “to organise”, as in ein Fest anstellen.^[7][4]

That noun is Middle High German anstalt (15th century), formed on the pattern of the older abstract nouns in -t from the same verb, in its sense “to arrange, set up”, and so belongs to stellen.^[7][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Paul finds Veranstaltung first in Adelung.^[5] The Grimms' first sense is the careful arranging of something, as in Gellert: durch meine Veranstaltung “through my arrangements”.^[8]

Semantic evolution

The phrase auf Veranstaltung took an adverbial sense, “at the instigation of”, as in Kotzebue and Gutzkow.^[8] The word also came to mean the thing arranged, already in Wieland.^[8] The verb is used of gatherings, balls and concerts in Goethe and today chiefly of social events, which has made Veranstaltung the general word for an organised event.^[6][5][9]

Timeline

• 1741 – Frisch records veranstalten.^[5][6]
• 18th century – Veranstaltung in Gellert and Adelung.^[8][5]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act of organising something.^[9][2]
2. An event that is organised, such as a concert, festival or sports meeting: die Veranstaltung wurde wegen des Regens abgesagt.^[9][1]
3. A university course, such as a lecture or seminar.^[9]

Related words

• veranstalten
• Veranstalter
• Anstalt

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org
3. ^ Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2007), 4th ed., Duden vol. 7, Mannheim: Dudenverlag
4. ^ a b c 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 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
6. ^ a b c Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 25, 78
7. ^ a b Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 48
8. ^ 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. 25, 79
9. ^ a b c d Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag