*wadją

Reconstruction

The word is *wadją in Wiktionary,^[1] *wađjan in Orel,^[2] and *wadja- in Kroonen and Köbler.^[3][4]

Etymology

Wiktionary derives it from Proto-Indo-European *wedʰ- (“to bind”), through a PIE *wodʰ-yo-m.^[1] Kroonen reconstructs *Huodʰ-io- and compares Old Church Slavonic and Russian verbs meaning "to lead".^[3]

Morphology

A neuter ja-stem.^[5][6] Köbler marks the stem class of the Gothic word as uncertain.^[7]

Evidence

The word is attested in all three branches: Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌳𐌹 (wadi), Old Norse veð, and Old English wedd, Old Frisian wed, Old Saxon weddi and Old High German wetti in West Germanic.^[2] The Gothic word occurs in 2 Corinthians and Ephesians, rendering Greek Ancient Greek ἀρραβών (arrhabṓn, “earnest money”).^[7] Wiktionary lists Medieval Latin wadium and Old French gage among its descendants.^[1]

Competing analyses

Kroonen thinks the original meaning was "to lead": the word became tied to marriage because the bride was led away from her father's family to her husband's, and he relates it to the verb *wedaną.^[3] Orel connects it with Latin vas (“bail, security”) and Lithuanian vãdas (“guarantee, surety”),^[2] as do Feist and Holthausen.^[8][9] Orel also lists Bréal's view that the Germanic word came from the Medieval Latin one.^[2]

Meanings

1. pledge, surety^[3][4]
2. wager, stake^[1]

Old English also used the word for "agreement" and "dowry",^[10] Old Frisian for "promise, contract, vow" and "fine",^[11] and Old High German for "agreement" and "penance".^[3]

Derivatives

• *wadjōną "to wager, to pledge",^[12] Kroonen's *wadjōjan-, Orel's *wađjōjanan, Köbler's *wadjōn;^[3][13][14] it gave Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐍅𐌰𐌳𐌾𐍉𐌽 (gawadjon, “to betroth”), Old Norse veðja (“to wager”) and Old English weddian (“to engage, to betroth”).^[13]
• Gothic also has the compound Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌱𐍉𐌺𐍉𐍃 (wadjabokos, “letter of pledge”).^[8]

Reflexes

• Gothic: 𐍅𐌰𐌳𐌹 (wadi, “earnest money, pledge”)^[8]
• Old Norse: veð (“pledge, security, stake”)^[6]
• Old English: wedd (“pledge, agreement, security, dowry”)^[10]
• Old Frisian: wed (“pledge, promise, vow, surety, fine”)^[11]
• Old Saxon: weddi (“pledge”)^[15]
• Old High German: wetti (“pledge, surety, agreement, vow”)^[16]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *wadją
2. ^ a b c d Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *wađjan
3. ^ a b c d e f Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 564
4. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *wadja-
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. wėdd
6. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard, Altnordisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary database copy), p. s.v. veð
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. wadi
8. ^ a b c Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. wadi
9. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Gotisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. wadi
10. ^ a b Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. wedd
11. ^ a b Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. wed
12. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *wadjōną
13. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. *wađjōjanan
14. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *wadjōn
15. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. weddi
16. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. wetti