*þankijaną

Reconstruction

The infinitive is *þankijaną in Ringe and Wiktionary,^[1][2] *þankjanan in Orel^[3] and *þankjan in Köbler;^[4] Kroonen cites the stem *þankjan-.^[5]

Etymology

It is from Proto-Indo-European *teng- (“to think, to feel, to perceive”): Wiktionary starts from *tong-éye-ti, a causative of that root,^[2] and Ringe from a post-PIE *tong- "to perceive, to think".^[6] Kroonen reconstructs *tong-éie- and takes it as identical to Latin tongeō (“to know”).^[5]

Morphology

A weak verb of class I with an irregular past: Ringe gives the principal parts *þankijaną, *þanhtē, *þanhtaz,^[1] and Orel marks the verb as irregular.^[3] Ringe counts it, with *sōkijaną "to look for", among the possible class I weak presents with anomalous past tenses.^[7] Bammesberger describes the small group of class I weak verbs whose dental suffix is added directly to the final consonant of the root, as in the past Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌷𐍄𐌰 (þahta) of Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (þagkjan); in the languages with i-umlaut the present shows the umlaut and the past does not.^[8] Feist derives the Gothic past from *þanhta, with syncope of the linking vowel.^[9] Kroonen notes that the verb looks like a causative, but because its meaning is stative rather than iterative he thinks it continues, like the Latin verb tongeō, a PIE i-present with o-grade of the root.^[5]

Evidence

The verb is attested in all three branches: Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (þagkjan) in Gothic, Old Norse þekkja in Old Norse, and Old English þencan, Old Frisian thenza, Old Saxon thenkian and Old High German denken in West Germanic.^[3] Outside Germanic it has close matches only in Italic, by de Vries's account:^[10] Latin tongeō (“I know”) in Old Latin, the Praenestine noun tongitiō (“notion”) and Oscan tanginúd (“by decision”).^[9] EWA thinks the Scandinavian verbs that keep the nasal and mean "to think", such as Swedish tänka, are loans from Low German, since they lack the assimilation seen in þekkja.^[11]

Competing analyses

Kroonen also compares Tocharian A tunk and Tocharian B tankw (“love”), from a Proto-Tocharian *tənkw;^[5] Orel compares Tocharian B cänk- (“to please”).^[3] Feist thought it uncertain whether Old Irish tongu (“I swear”) belongs here, though the verb may first have meant "to speak";^[9] Ringe lists the third person tongid among the cognates.^[6]

Meanings

1. to think^[5][6][4]
2. to perceive^[6][2]

Gothic used the verb for "to think, to plan",^[3] and Old Norse for "to perceive, to recognise; to know".^[10] Köbler sets up a second *þankjan "to make pleasant" for a homonymous þekkja in Old Norse.^[4]

Derivatives

• *þanhtaz "thought", formally the past participle.^[6][1][12]
• *þankaz "thanks", an a-stem,^[5][13] with the verb *þankōną "to thank", which Kroonen writes *þankōjan-.^[5]
• *þunkijaną "to seem", the intransitive with zero grade of the root;^[6] Kroonen says that its construction with a dative subject marked a lack of control, against the more active *þankjan-.^[14]
• *biþankijaną "to think up, to bethink".^[15]
• In Orel: the adjective *þankjaz "agreeable" and the nouns *þunxtuz "thought, conscience" and *þunkōn "thought, mood".^[3]

Reflexes

• Gothic: 𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (þagkjan, “to think”)^[9]
• Old Norse: þekkja (“to perceive, to recognise, to know”)^[10]
• Old English: þencan (“to think, to consider, to remember”)^[16]
• Old Frisian: thanka (“to think”), thenza^[17]
• Old Saxon: thenkian (“to think, to consider, to contrive”)^[18]
• Old High German: denken (“to think, to consider, to devise”)^[11]

References

1. ^ a b c Ringe, Don (2017), From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 281
2. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *þankijaną
3. ^ a b c d e f Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *þankjanan
4. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *þankjan
5. ^ a b c d e f g Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 533
6. ^ a b c d e f Ringe, Don (2017), From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 136
7. ^ Ringe, Don (2017), From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 207
8. ^ Bammesberger, Alfred (1986), Der Aufbau des germanischen Verbalsystems, Heidelberg: Winter, p. § 11.1.2
9. ^ a b c d Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. þagkjan
10. ^ a b c de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. þekkja
11. ^ a b Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. s.v. denken
12. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *þanhtaz
13. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *þankaz
14. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 551
15. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *biþankijaną
16. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. þėncan
17. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altfriesisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. thanka
18. ^ Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. THENKIAN