*frāgēn

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *frāgēn.^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Proto-West Germanic *frāgu (“question”) + *-ēn.^[1] The noun continues Proto-Germanic *frēgō (“question”), which Kroonen cites as *frēgō-: in his view this ō-stem was the base of the verbs for "to ask", which he traces to *frēgōjan-.^[2][3] Köbler sets up Proto-Germanic *frēgēn, *frǣgǣn and *frāgōn.^[4][5]

Morphology

A weak verb: Old High German frāgēn belongs to class III,^[6] and a class II verb -frāgōn occurs there only with prefixes.^[7] The other languages have class II verbs: frāgon, frēgia and Old English gefragade.^[7][8] EWA ascribes the class III inflection, found only in High German, to the influence of the verb for "to say", Old High German sagēn, its opposite in meaning.^[7]

Evidence

The verb is attested in Old Saxon frāgon,^[9] Old Frisian frēgia,^[10] Old Dutch fragon, from Williram's commentary of about 1100,^[11] and Old High German frāgēn, from the 8th century.^[7] Old English has it only once, in the Northumbrian past tense ⟨gefragade⟩ of Matthew 2:16, which points to a class II verb "to learn".^[7] EWA finds correspondences of the class II verb only in the West Germanic languages, and holds that in West Germanic this verb, formed from the noun, replaced the Proto-Germanic verb for "to ask", Proto-Germanic *frehnan-.^[7][12]

Competing analyses

Wiktionary's *frāgēn has the class III suffix,^[1] while EWA finds that suffix only in High German and derives the verb of the other languages, with a class II suffix, from the noun for "question".^[7] Kroonen likewise sets up *frēgōjan-.^[3] Jordan took the Northumbrian ⟨gefragade⟩, which stands beside ⟨gefraignade⟩ in the Lindisfarne Gospels, for a miswriting of a form of the strong verb, with weak inflection under Norse influence.^[7] EWA sees nothing against taking ⟨gefragade⟩ as a real form.^[7]

Meanings

1. to ask^[1]

Old Frisian also used the verb for "to demand",^[10] and Old High German for "to inquire, to investigate".^[7]

Derivatives

• Old Dutch rādfrāgen (“to ask advice”) and Old Saxon rādfrāgon are compounds with the word for "counsel".^[13]
• Old Frisian has the prefixed bifrēgia.^[10]

Reflexes

• Old English: gefragade (“to learn”)^[7][14]
• Old Frisian: frēgia (“to ask, to demand”)^[10]
• Old Saxon: frāgon (“to ask”)^[9]
• Old Dutch: fragon (“to ask”)^[11]
• Old High German: frāgēn (“to ask, to inquire, to investigate”)^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frāgēn
2. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frēgō
3. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 153
4. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *frēgēn
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frāgon
6. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frāgēn
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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. frâgên
8. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altfriesisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. frēgia
9. ^ a b Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. frāgon
10. ^ a b c d Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. frēgia
11. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. fragon
12. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 154
13. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. rādfrāgen
14. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *frāgian