aufgrund

Forms

aufgrund^[1] Also written auf Grund.^[2][1]

Etymology

It is a compound from German auf (“on”) + Grund (“ground, basis”), a young fusion of the phrase with the article, “on the ground of”, which appears at the end of the 18th century; the article was dropped in the second half of the 19th century.^[3][4][1] The first part continues Middle High German ūf, Old High German ūf, from Proto-Germanic *upp, and the second Middle High German grunt, Old High German grunt, from Proto-Germanic *grunduz (“ground, bottom”).^[5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Paul's first example of the phrase is from Hippel at the end of the 18th century: madam verlangte auf den grund dieses vorzuges ein vollstimmiges ja zur heirath, “madam demanded, on the strength of this advantage, a full yes to the marriage”.^[3] The earliest record written as one word in the Grimms' revised dictionary is from 1899, in the journal Das literarische Echo.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Its two senses, “on the basis of” and “because of”, are both recorded in the 20th century.^[4] The Duden dictionary listed auf Grund von with a dative in its 8th edition (1905) and the spelling aufgrund beside auf Grund from its 14th edition (1954); writing it separately has stayed common to the present.^[3][4]

Timeline

• Late 18th century – The phrase auf den Grund is used in this sense by Hippel.^[3]
• Second half of the 19th century – The article is dropped.^[3]
• 1899 – First record written as one word.^[4]
• 1905 – The Duden dictionary lists auf Grund von.^[3]
• 1954 – The Duden dictionary admits the spelling aufgrund.^[3]

Meanings

Preposition

1. (with genitive) Because of, owing to: Aufgrund des Streiks fielen viele Züge aus.^[2][1]
2. (with genitive) On the basis of: Aufgrund der Messungen ließ sich das Alter bestimmen.^[4][7]

Adverb

1. aufgrund von: because of, owing to: aufgrund von Bauarbeiten.^[2]

Related words

• auf
• Grund
• wegen

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
3. ^ a b c d e f g 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 c d e f Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob Grimm und Wilhelm Grimm, Neubearbeitung (1965–2018), ed. Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften and Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, 9 vols. (A–F), Leipzig / Stuttgart: Hirzel, p. 3, 520
5. ^ Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 71
6. ^ Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 378
7. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org