*helaną

Reconstruction

The infinitive is *helaną in Wiktionary and Ringe,^[1][2] *xelanan in Orel^[3] and *helan in Köbler;^[4] Kroonen cites it by its stem *helan-,^[5] Seebold as HEL-A-.^[6]

Etymology

It is from Proto-Indo-European *k̑el- (“to hide”):^[7] Kroonen derives it from a PIE thematic present *kél-e-,^[5] Wiktionary from the third person *ḱéleti.^[1]

Morphology

A strong verb of class IV,^[8][9][10] with the principal parts *helaną, *hal, *hēlun, *hulanaz.^[2] Mailhammer files it among the strong verbs whose Indo-European etymology is inexact.^[8] The modern German hehlen has gone over to the weak verbs, which EWA puts down to the verb's rare use; the old participle survives as the adjective verhohlen.^[10]

Evidence

The verb itself is found only in West Germanic: Old English helan, Old Frisian hela, Old Saxon helan and Old High German helan.^[5][3] De Vries notes that it is not handed down in Scandinavian.^[11] Gothic has no form of the verb, but EWA and LIV connect Gothic 𐌷𐌿𐌻𐌿𐌽𐌳𐌹 (hulundi, “cave”), which LIV explains as an old feminine participle.^[10][7] Old High German has the verb from the 8th century on.^[10] Outside Germanic the closest matches are Latin occulō (“to hide, to conceal”) and Old Irish ceilid, from *kél-e-.^[5][10]

Competing analyses

Kroonen thinks the original meaning was probably "to cover", as in *helmaz "helmet", and that Old English helan still shows it.^[5] Wiktionary compares Latin cēlō (“to hide, to conceal”);^[1] EWA, on the other hand, takes the Latin verb as a denominative, perhaps from Latin cella (“storeroom”), and sets the inherited match in the second part of occulō.^[10]

Meanings

1. to hide, to conceal^[5][3][1]
2. to receive stolen goods^[4]

In Old English the verb also meant "to cover",^[5][12] and Middle Dutch, the modern Dutch verb and German use it for "to fence" stolen goods.^[5]

Derivatives

• *hēliz "deceitful", a vṛddhi gerundive to the verb.^[5][13]
• *helmaz "helmet", from the root in the sense "to cover".^[14][15]
• *huljaną "to cover, to veil", a zero-grade present.^[16]
• *haljō "hell", which Kroonen calls possibly a derivation from the root "to cover" and Orel derives from this verb.^[17][18]
• *hallō "hall", in Orel from *xal-n-ō based on the verb.^[19][20]
• With prefixes, Köbler sets up *bihelan and *farhelan "to conceal".^[21][22]

Reflexes

• Old English: helan (“to conceal, to cover, to hide”)^[12]
• Old Frisian: hela (“to keep secret”)^[23]
• Old Saxon: helan (“to conceal, to hide”)^[24]
• Old High German: helan (“to hide, to conceal, to keep secret”)^[10]
• Gothic has only the related Gothic 𐌷𐌿𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 (huljan, “to cover”) and Gothic 𐌷𐌿𐌻𐌿𐌽𐌳𐌹 (hulundi), and Old Norse no form of the verb.^[7][11]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *helaną
2. ^ a b Ringe, Don (2017), From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 271
3. ^ a b c Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *xelanan
4. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *helan
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 218
6. ^ Seebold, Elmar (1970), Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen starken Verben, The Hague / Paris: Mouton, p. HEL-A-
7. ^ a b c Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert, p. s.v. *k̑el-
8. ^ a b Mailhammer, Robert (2007), The Germanic Strong Verbs: Foundations and Development of a New System, Trends in Linguistics 183, Berlin / New York: Mouton de Gruyter, p. 221
9. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. helan
10. ^ a b c d e f g 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. helan
11. ^ a b de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. hel
12. ^ a b Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. helan
13. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *hēliz
14. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 219
15. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *xelmaz
16. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *huljaną
17. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 204
18. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *xaljō
19. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *xallō
20. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *hallō
21. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *bihelan
22. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *farhelan
23. ^ Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. hela
24. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. helan