Etymologically
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eröffnen

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Pronunciation

  • /ʔɛɐ̯ˈʔœfnən/[1]

Forms

eröffnen (third-person singular present eröffnet, past tense eröffnete, past participle eröffnet, auxiliary haben)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German eroffenen, inherited from Old High German iroffanōn (“to reveal, open”), the verb öffnen with the prefix er-.[1][2][3] The same formation is Middle Low German erȫpenen.[2]

The base verb is Middle High German offenen, Old High German offanōn, formed from the adjective offen, Old High German offan.[4][5] That adjective is Proto-Germanic *upanaz, also found in Old Saxon opan, Old English open and Old Norse opinn and continued in English open; it was formed with an n-suffix and ablaut from the same base as auf.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the Old High German Tatian (about 830), rendering Matthew 13:35: ih aroffonon in ratissun minan mund “I will open my mouth in parables”.[2][3] Köbler gives the senses “to reveal, open, make known, show”.[3]

Semantic evolution

The plain sense “to open” was in use mainly from the 16th to the early 19th century and then went out of use, giving way to öffnen; it lasted longest in elevated style, as when Schiller writes that Mylord die Türe schnell eröffnete.[2][6] Opening a will is still the legal phrase.[6]

The sense “to make known, disclose” goes back to late Old High German, to Notker;[6] Luther writes that heaven will eröffenen a man's misdeeds, that is, bring them to light (Job 20:27).[6] “To make accessible” is Early New High German, and “to begin formally”, as a meeting or a hunt, became common only in the 18th century.[6] Adelung records opening a ball by dancing the first dance and opening a school.[7] The noun Eröffnung dates from late Middle High German.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 830 – Old High German aroffonon in the Tatian.[2][3]
  • Early 11th century – Notker uses the verb in the sense “to make known”.[6]
  • c. 1466 – The first printed German Bible has eroffnen “to open”.[2]
  • 18th century – The sense “to begin formally” becomes common.[6]
  • 1793 – Adelung records einen Ball eröffnen.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To open (to the public), especially for the first time: Im Mai eröffnet sie eine kleine Bäckerei.[8][1]
  2. (medicine; otherwise dated) To open, especially by cutting;[8] (officialese) to open officially, as a will;[8] (commerce) to open (an account); (law) to institute (proceedings).[8]
  3. To begin officially: Der Bürgermeister eröffnete die Versammlung.[8][1] Das Feuer eröffnen is “to open fire”; on the stock exchange, to open in a certain way.[8]
  4. To disclose (something new or unexpected) to someone: Sie eröffnete uns, dass sie das Land verlassen werde.[8][1] Reflexive, elevated: to confide in someone.[8]
  5. To open up, make available: Die neue Stelle eröffnet ihm ganz andere Möglichkeiten.[8][1] Reflexive: to open up, become available.[8]

Word family

  • Eröffnung
  • wiedereröffnen

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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. 8, 2042
  3. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
  4. ^ a b Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 666
  5. ^ Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 593
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
  7. ^ a b Adelung, Johann Christoph (1793–1801), Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart, 2nd ed., 4 vols., Leipzig: Breitkopf
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag