*mēlą

Reconstruction

The word is *mēlą in Wiktionary,^[1] *mēlan in Orel,^[2] and the stem *mēla- in Kroonen and Köbler,^[3][4] who also gives *mǣla-.^[4] The sources agree on the form but not on whether it is one word: Wiktionary and Köbler have one word with the senses "time", "measure" and "spot",^[1][4] Orel has a *mēlan I "time, measure" and a *mēlan II "mark", which he thinks are historically one word,^[2] and Kroonen has three homonyms: "point in time", "spot, mark" and "measure, amount".^[3]

Etymology

Kroonen derives the "measure" word from Proto-Indo-European *meh₁- (“to measure”);^[3] Orel and Lehmann derive the "time" word from the same root.^[2][5] Wiktionary gives a PIE *meHlom.^[1]

Morphology

A neuter a-stem.^[4][3] Gothic also has an n-stem Gothic 𐌼𐌴𐌻𐌰 (mela, “bushel”), which Kroonen traces to *mēlan-.^[3][5] Orel and Lehmann see in the time word the PIE root *mē- "to measure" with an l-suffix, and compare Lithuanian tuo-mẽl (“right away”), literally "that time".^[2][5]

Evidence

The word is attested in all three branches: Gothic 𐌼𐌴𐌻 (mel), Old Norse mál, Old English mǣl and Old High German māl.^[3] The Gothic word means "time, hour"; its plural also means "writing, scripture".^[6][5] The Old Norse word in the sense "meal" was borrowed into Northern Sami.^[7]

Competing analyses

For the "point in time" word Kroonen leaves the origin open: it may be the same as the "measure" word, or it may start from a meaning "spot, point".^[3] He derives the "spot, mark" word from PIE *melh₂-o-, comparing Sanskrit मल (mála, “dirt”), Ancient Greek μέλας (mélas, “dark, black”) and Lithuanian mėlas (“blue”);^[3] Wiktionary gives the same root, Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“dark”), for that sense.^[1] Lehmann treats the two Gothic words as having separate origins, the "writing" word from the colour root and the "time" word from the root "to measure".^[5] Feist instead took the Gothic word as one, with "writing" as "applying dark colour", and compared the same words for dirt and black.^[6] De Vries separates the Old Norse word for "time, term; meal; measure" from its homonym "sign, spot", and reports J. Trier's view that both started from building in wattle and daub; de Vries himself derives the time word from the staking out of the assembly place.^[7] Not the same word are the "spot, blemish" words with the diphthong, such as Old High German meil, which Köbler and Wiktionary put under a separate *mailą.^[8][9]

Meanings

1. point in time, time, occasion^[3][4][1]
2. time for eating, meal^[4][1]
3. measure, amount^[3][4][1]
4. spot, mark^[3][4][1]

In Old Norse the word also meant "goal", in Middle Dutch "sign, stigma".^[3] Old English used it for an ornament, a cross and a weapon,^[10] Old Saxon for a picture.^[11]

Derivatives

• *mēlijaną "to mark, stain, paint", in Gothic 𐌼𐌴𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 (meljan, “to write”);^[12] Orel writes it *mēljanan and derives it from *mēlan II.^[13]
• *mēlōną and *mēlāną "to stain, to paint".^[14][15]
• *mēlja-, in Old Norse mælir and Old English mēle "cup, bowl, basin", and *mēljan-, in Old Norse mæla (“to measure”), which Kroonen compares with the "measure" word.^[3]

Reflexes

• Gothic: 𐌼𐌴𐌻 (mel, “time, hour; in the plural, writing”)^[6]
• Old Norse: mál (“time, term; meal; measure; sign, spot”)^[7]
• Old English: mǣl (“measure, time, occasion, meal; mark, sign, spot”)^[10]
• Old Frisian: mēl (“meal”)^[16]
• Old Saxon: māl (“sign, picture”)^[11]
• Old Dutch: māl (“jar, vase”), in Kroonen's list^[3]
• Old High German: māl (“point in time, time, spot, sign”)^[17]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *mēlą
2. ^ a b c d Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 269
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 362
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *mēla-
5. ^ a b c d e Lehmann, Winfred P. (1986), A Gothic Etymological Dictionary, based on the third edition of Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache by Sigmund Feist, Leiden: Brill, p. 278
6. ^ a b c Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. mel
7. ^ a b c de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 376
8. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *maila-
9. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *mailą
10. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. mǣl
11. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *māl
12. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *mēlijaną
13. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 270
14. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *mēlōną
15. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *mēlāną
16. ^ Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. mēl
17. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. māl