*māan

Reconstruction

Ringe and Taylor reconstruct *māan for Proto-West Germanic,^[1][2] and Wiktionary has the same form.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *mēaną (“to mow”),^[3][4] which Kroonen cites as *mēan-, Orel as *mēanan and Köbler as *mēan, *mǣan, *mējan, *mǣjan.^[4][5][6] Ringe and Taylor note that the Proto-West Germanic *ā should continue Proto-Germanic *ē.^[1] EWA derives the Proto-Germanic form from *mēi̯e/a-: after the loss of the old *-i̯-, different glides were inserted in the hiatus, *-i̯- before Old High German and Middle Dutch, *-u̯- before Old English.^[7]

Morphology

A reduplicating strong verb.^[4][8] Its root ended in a vowel in Proto-Germanic, and the West Germanic languages filled the hiatus with various root-final consonants, Old English with w.^[9] Old English kept the long ā unfronted before this w, while Old Frisian has a third singular mēth in an i-umlaut environment.^[2] Old High German māen passed into the weak verbs of class I.^[1][7]

Evidence

Ringe and Taylor list the verb among the lexemes unique to West Germanic, continued by Old English māwan, Old Frisian miā and Old High German māen.^[10] Kroonen and EWA give no Old Saxon or Old Dutch form; the verb is next found in Middle Low German meien and Middle Dutch maeyen.^[7][4] EWA records the Old High German verb from the 9th or 10th century, in glosses rendering Latin secō and ēvellō.^[7]

Competing analyses

Ringe and Taylor doubt the traditional connection with Greek ἀμάω (amáō), since the Greek form reflects a root-final *h₂, whereas Proto-West Germanic *ā should go back to *eh₁.^[1] EWA accepts the comparison and takes the Greek verb for irregular, either through an assimilation of the laryngeals or as a remodelled formation,^[7] and Orel calls Proto-Germanic *mēanan related to it.^[5]

Meanings

1. to mow^[1][3]

Old High German also used the verb for "to pull out (grass), to cut".^[7][11]

Derivatives

• Kroonen derives Proto-Germanic *mēþa- (“mowing, mown grass”) from the verb as a to-stem, behind Old English mǣþ and Old High German āmād (“aftermath”).^[12] Orel also derives Proto-Germanic *mēþan from *mēanan.^[13]

Reflexes

• Old English: māwan (“to mow”)^[8]
• Old Frisian: miā (“to mow”)^[14]
• Old High German: māen (“to mow, to cut, to pull out”)^[7]

References

1. ^ 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. 127
2. ^ a b Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 151
3. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *māan
4. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 360
5. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 269
6. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *mēan
7. ^ a b c d e f g 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. mâen
8. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. māwan
9. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 150
10. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 126–127
11. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. māen
12. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 367
13. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 271
14. ^ Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. miā