*galaubijan

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *galaubijan "to agree to, to allow; to believe" for Proto-West Germanic.^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *galaubijaną (“to believe”),^[2] which Köbler cites as *galaubjan and Orel lists under *lauƀjanan "to believe".^[3][4] Orel derives that verb from the adjective *lauƀaz.^[4] Wiktionary analyses the West Germanic verb as the prefix *ga- with *laubijan "to allow; to praise".^[1][5] Ringe and Taylor count it among the more than fifty Old English words whose i-umlauted diphthong continues Proto-West Germanic *au, and trace *galaubijaną through *ġælēabjąn to West Saxon ġelīefan, Mercian ġelēfan and Northumbrian ġelēfa.^[2]

Morphology

A weak verb of class I.^[6][7] Ringe and Taylor reconstruct its Proto-Germanic past *galaubidē "(s)he believed", continued by Old Saxon ⟨gilōƀda⟩ and Old High German ⟨giloubta⟩; in Old English the connecting vowel was syncopated, giving ġelīefde.^[8]

Evidence

The verb is found in Old English ġelīefan, Old Saxon gilōvian, Old Dutch gilōven and Old High German gilouben.^[2][9] EWA dates the Old Dutch form to 791–800,^[9] and ONW has it in Williram's commentary of about 1100 and the Middle Franconian Rhyme Bible.^[10] Old Saxon has the verb 41 times,^[6] and Old High German from the Abrogans on.^[9] For Old Frisian, Orel lists a prefixed ge-lēva,^[4] while Köbler and EWA give only the simple verb Old Frisian lēwa, liōwa "to believe".^[11][9]

Meanings

1. to believe^[2][1]
2. to agree to, to allow^[1][7]

Old English also used the verb for "to grant" and "to trust",^[7] and Old High German for "to trust, to suppose", and reflexively for "to give something up, to fall away from".^[9]

Derivatives

• *galaubō "belief", which Wiktionary reconstructs from Proto-Germanic *galaubô.^[12]

Reflexes

• Old English: ġelīefan (“to believe, to allow, to grant, to trust”)^[7]
• Old Saxon: gilōvian (“to believe”)^[6]
• Old Dutch: gilōven (“to believe”)^[10]
• Old High German: gilouben (“to believe, to trust, to suppose”)^[9]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *galaubijan
2. ^ a b c d Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 245
3. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *galaubjan
4. ^ a b c Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 238
5. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *laubijan
6. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gilōvian
7. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gelíefan
8. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 267
9. ^ a b c d e f 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. louben
10. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. gilōven
11. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altfriesisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. lêva
12. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *galaubō