*frī

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs the adjective *frī "free",^[1] and Ringe and Taylor write the same form, *frī "free", for the stage before Old English.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *frijaz (“free”),^[2][3] which Kroonen cites by its stem *fri(j)a- and Köbler as *frīja-, *frījaz.^[4][5] Boutkan and Siebinga set up Proto-Frisian *frī.^[6]

Morphology

An adjective.^[7][8] In Old English, EWA explains the usual frēo by a generalisation of the outcome of *-iju-, found for instance in the dative plural, beside a genitive ⟨frīges⟩ and a form frī.^[9]

Evidence

EWA finds the word in all the Germanic languages: Old Saxon frī, Old Frisian frī, Old English frēo and Old High German frī, beside Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌴𐌹𐍃 (freis).^[9][4] Old Dutch has fri glossing Latin līber in material dated 801–1200.^[10] Old High German has it from the 8th century.^[7] In Old Saxon, Köbler knows the simple adjective only from compounds: frīling (“freeborn man”), recorded in the 9th-century histories of Nithard as a word of the Saxons' own language, and frīgilātan (“freed”) in a 12th-century gloss.^[11][12][13] Lombard has it as the second part of fulcfree (“of common free status”), beside Old English folcfrēo.^[9]

Competing analyses

The Old English genitive ⟨frīges⟩ is explained in three ways: Hogg takes *w to have become *j before a front vowel, Sievers and Brunner hold that ⟨ij⟩ was kept before a palatal vowel, and Bammesberger explains it by analogy with the verb frēogan (“to love”).^[9] Ringe and Taylor note that the Old English verb meaning both "to love" and "to free" is usually held to be one word, its sense changed under the influence of the adjective; but pre-Old English *frijōjan "to free" may also have been a new derivative of *frī that happened to sound like the inherited verb.^[2]

Meanings

1. free^[2][1]

Old High German also used the word for "freeborn" and "freed",^[9] and Old Frisian for "of free status", "exempt from a fine" and "freely available".^[8] The sense "free" grew out of an older one: Boutkan and Siebinga start from "dear",^[6] Kroonen from "related", a shift that points to a society built on clans,^[4] and Green from "own", applied to one's kinsmen, which still shows in compounds such as Old High German frīhals.^[14] Green adds that the legal scope of the word later widened from the kindred to the whole community.^[15]

Derivatives

• *friþu "peace", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[16] Kroonen takes Proto-Germanic *friþu- for a tu-stem derived from *fri(j)a- at a relatively late stage,^[17] and Ringe and Taylor trace Old English friþ, Old Frisian fretho, Old Saxon friđu and Old High German fridu to Proto-Northwest Germanic *friþuz.^[18] Green explains the word as the state among those who regard each other as their own kindred.^[15]
• *frijahals "freedom", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[19] Orel's compound *frija-xalsaz, "having a neck free of a yoke", gives Old English frīols, Old Frisian frīhals and Old High German frīhals.^[3]
• *frijadōm "freedom", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[20] Köbler lists Old English frēodōm, Old Frisian frīdōm and Old High German frītuom.^[21]
• *frijōn "to love", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[22] Ringe and Taylor trace West Saxon frēogan (“to love, to free”) to Proto-Germanic *frijōną "to love".^[2]
• Wiktionary reconstructs the goddess's name *Frīju;^[23] EWA sets up West Germanic *frijju behind Old Saxon frī (“woman”) and the Old High German goddess name, and puts them with the adjective.^[9]

Reflexes

• Old English: frēo (“free, noble, glad”)^[24]
• Old Frisian: frī (“free, freeborn, independent”)^[8]
• Old Saxon: frī (“free”)^[9]
• Old Dutch: frī (“free”)^[10]
• Old High German: frī (“free, freeborn, freed, unbound”)^[9]
• Lombard: fulcfree (“of common free status”)^[9]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frī
2. ^ a b c d e Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 318
3. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 114
4. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 155
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *frīja-, *frījaz
6. ^ a b Boutkan, Dirk; Siebinga, Sjoerd Michiel (2005), Old Frisian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 1, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. fri
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frī 1
8. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. frī
9. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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. frî
10. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. frī
11. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *frī?
12. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frīling*
13. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frīgilātan*
14. ^ Green, D. H. (1998), Language and History in the Early Germanic World, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 41
15. ^ a b Green, D. H. (1998), Language and History in the Early Germanic World, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 43
16. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *friþu
17. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 156
18. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 322
19. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frijahals
20. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frijadōm
21. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *frijadōma-, *frijadōmaz
22. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frijōn
23. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *Frīju
24. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. frīo