*farh

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *farh "piglet" for Proto-West Germanic.^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *farhaz (“pig, piglet”),^[1] which Kroonen and Köbler cite as *farha-.^[2][3] EWA writes the Proto-Germanic base as *farχ-.^[4]

Morphology

A neuter noun in Old High German: EWA classes Old High German farah as an a-stem that was originally an s-stem in *-iz-, *-az-, with the plural far(i)hir.^[5] Casaretto counts it among the nouns of this kind and takes the plural in -ir for analogical.^[6] Old English fearh is masculine or neuter.^[7][8]

Evidence

EWA finds the only Germanic counterparts of Old High German farah in Old English fearh, with a possible trace in the skaldic compound Old Norse seimfarri, perhaps "gold boar".^[5] In Old High German the word is recorded only in glosses and in the Lex Salica.^[5] Old Saxon has for once, in the accusative ⟨vor⟩, in the 12th-century register of the abbey of Herford.^[9] Old Dutch has the diminutive farkīn only as the first element of place names such as ⟨Uarkendunc⟩, a lost place near Putte-Keerbergen in the province of Antwerp, recorded from 1155.^[10]

Competing analyses

Old English also has fōr (“piglet, pig”), which Köbler derives from the same Proto-Germanic word,^[11] while Holthausen connects it with Latin pariō (“to give birth”).^[12]

Meanings

1. piglet^[1]

Kroonen glosses the Proto-Germanic word "farrow, pig" and suggests that it may first have meant the wild boar rather than the domestic animal.^[2] Old High German used it for "piglet" and "pig".^[5]

Derivatives

• Kroonen derives the diminutives Middle Dutch verkijn from *farha-kīna- and Old High German farhilī(n) from *farha-līna-.^[2] EWA finds the k of the Low German and Dutch diminutives a problem, since the base goes back to *farχ-, and doubts that it came from the stem-final h.^[4] ONW analyses Old Dutch farkīn as the noun with the diminutive suffix -kīn.^[10]

Reflexes

• Old English: fearh (“piglet”)^[7]
• Old Saxon: for (“piglet”)^[9]
• Old High German: farah (“piglet, pig”)^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *farh
2. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 129
3. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *farha-
4. ^ 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. farhilî
5. ^ a b c d e 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. farah
6. ^ Casaretto, Antje (2004), Nominale Wortbildung der gotischen Sprache: Die Derivation der Substantive, Heidelberg: Winter
7. ^ a b Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. fearh
8. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. fearh
9. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. for
10. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. farkīn
11. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. fōr
12. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. fōr