Verein

Forms

Verein m (genitive Vereines or Vereins, plural Vereine)^[1] The older noun was feminine, die Vereine, and Adelung notes that some Upper German regions kept that gender, with the plural Vereinen.^[2][3] The Grimms' dictionary also records the neuter das Verein.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German vereine (“union, agreement”), a feminine noun formed from the verb vereinen (modern vereinen).^[4][1][5] In Early New High German the feminine noun is recorded in the 16th century, and in the 18th century a masculine noun arose beside it or out of it.^[5][6] The Duden dictionary treats the modern noun as a back-formation from the verb.^[7]

The verb is fireinen (“to resolve”), a strengthening formation with the prefix ver- on einen (“to unite”), from ein (“one”); the same verb is Middle Low German vorēnen and Dutch verenen.^[6][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Middle High German vereine “union, agreement” is recorded in 1314 and in Tauler.^[4] The modern masculine is first found in 1517, in the Theuerdank of Emperor Maximilian I, of an alliance between parties.^[9][2]

Semantic evolution

The word first belonged to constitutional law, of leagues between princes and estates: the electors' unions of 1338, 1399 and 1424 were called Churvereine, a 1534 text speaks of the christlichen verain of the Schmalkaldic League, and in 1632 the alliance of the Ten Jurisdictions in the Grisons was called die ewige verein.^[2][3] Adelung still considered it an Upper German word.^[2]

In the 18th century it also meant the state of being united, as in Schiller's Gesang und Liebe in schönem Verein, which gave the phrase im Verein mit “together with” (19th century).^[3][6] From the early 19th century the word named a group of people joined for a purpose.^[6][10] In the course of that century the Verein became the typical form of German cultural, social and political life, regulated by the law of associations, and in football it became a strong focus of identity, often with a possessive (mein Verein).^[9] English borrowed Zollverein in 1843, Turnverein in 1852 and Verein itself in 1853.^[11]

Timeline

• 1314 – Middle High German vereine “union, agreement” is recorded.^[4]
• 1517 – Verein appears in the Theuerdank.^[9]
• 1534 – The Schmalkaldic League is called a verain.^[3]
• 18th century – The masculine noun spreads, also meaning “state of being united”.^[5][6]
• Early 19th century – The word names an association of people.^[6][10]
• 1843 – English Zollverein is recorded.^[11]
• 1853 – English Verein is recorded.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. An association, club or society whose members pursue a common aim under fixed statutes: Mitglied in einem Verein werden.^[7][1]
2. (law) In eingetragener Verein (abbreviated eV): a registered association.^[7]
3. (colloquial, ironic) A group of people, a bunch: ein seltsamer Verein.^[7][10]
4. In im Verein mit: together with, in combination with.^[7][6]

Word family

• Sportverein
• Turnverein
• Zollverein
• Vereinsrecht

Related words

• vereinen
• vereinigen
• einen
• ein

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Adelung, Johann Christoph (1793–1801), Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart, 2nd ed., 4 vols., Leipzig: Breitkopf
3. ^ a b c d e Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 25, 272
4. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
5. ^ a b c Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 951
6. ^ a b c d e f g Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
7. ^ a b c d e Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
8. ^ Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. 2, 994
9. ^ a b c Wortgeschichte digital (2020–), Zentrum für digitale Lexikographie der deutschen Sprache (ZDL), Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, zdl.org/wb/wortgeschichten
10. ^ a b c Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org
11. ^ a b c Lehnwortportal Deutsch (2012–), Leibniz-Institut für Deutsche Sprache, Mannheim, lwp.ids-mannheim.de