*allswā

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs the adverb *allswā.^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound from Proto-West Germanic *all + *swā.^[1] The daughters' dictionaries analyse their forms in the same way: Köbler refers Old English eallswā to eall and swā, Old Saxon alsō to al and sō, and Old High German alsō and Old Dutch alsō likewise to the words for "all" and "so".^[2][3][4][5]

Morphology

An adverb and conjunction.^[3][6]

Evidence

The word is found in all the West Germanic languages.^[1] Old English has eallswā as a conjunction glossing Latin tamquam and ut.^[2] Old Frisian has alsā, beside ⟨olsā⟩, which Bremmer glosses with Old English ⟨eall swā⟩.^[7] Old Saxon has alsō in the Heliand and in glosses,^[3] Old Dutch alsō in the Psalms of 901–1000 and in Williram's commentary of 1100,^[8] and Old High German alsō more than 950 times.^[4]

Meanings

1. completely so, exactly so; likewise^[1]

As a conjunction the word also meant "just as" in Old English,^[2] "as soon as, if, when" in Old Saxon,^[9] and "if, as if, because, so that" in Old Frisian.^[6]

Reflexes

• Old English: eallswā (“just as, even as”)^[2]
• Old Frisian: alsā (“so, likewise; as, if, when”)^[6]
• Old Saxon: alsō (“likewise, just as, as soon as, if, when”)^[9]
• Old Dutch: alsō (“so, just as”)^[5]
• Old High German: alsō (“so, likewise, namely, as, as if”)^[4]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *allswā
2. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. eallswā
3. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. alsō
4. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. alsō
5. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. alsō
6. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. alsā
7. ^ Bremmer, Rolf H., Jr. (2009), An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam / Philadelphia: John Benjamins, p. 188
8. ^ Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. alsō
9. ^ a b Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. also