*hwat

*hwat¹ what

Reconstruction

Ringe and Taylor's Proto-West Germanic paradigm of the interrogative pronoun has the neuter nominative and accusative *hwat,^[1] and Wiktionary has the same form.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *hwat (“what”),^[3][4] the neuter of the Indo-European interrogative pronoun, which Kroonen lists under *hwa- "who? what?".^[4] In Old English and Old Frisian the vowel was fronted, giving Old English hwæt and Old Frisian hwet.^[3]

Morphology

The interrogative was built partly on a stem *hwa- and partly on *hwi- ~ *hwe-, the Indo-European stems having merged in Proto-Germanic; no separate feminine survived in West Germanic, and there was no plural.^[5] Ringe and Taylor reconstruct the masculine-feminine nominative *hwaz (perhaps *hwiz), accusative *hwanā, genitive *hwes (perhaps *hwas), dative *hwa(m)mē (with a query) and instrumental *hwī, beside the neuter *hwat.^[1] Old English and Old Frisian generalised the forms with *a, except for the Old English instrumental, while Old Saxon and Old High German generalised the forms with a front vowel, except for the neuter nominative and accusative.^[1]

Evidence

The pronoun is attested in all the West Germanic languages: Old English hwæt, Old Frisian hwet, Old Saxon hwat and Old High German waz,^[3] and Old Dutch uuad, glossing Latin quid in the psalms of the 9th century.^[6]

Meanings

1. what (interrogative)^[7][2]

Old English also used the word as an adverb, "why", and as an interjection,^[8][9] and Old Frisian and Old Saxon also for "something".^[10][11]

Reflexes

• Old English: hwæt (“what, who”)^[12]
• Old Frisian: hwet (“what, something”)^[10]
• Old Saxon: hwat (“what”)^[13]
• Old Dutch: wath (“what”)^[6]
• Old High German: waz (“what”)^[14]

*hwat² quick, brave

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs an adjective *hwat "quick, sharp, brave".^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *hwataz (“quick”).^[2] Kroonen cites the Proto-Germanic adjective as *hwata- "quick" and makes it an adjective to the strong verb *hwētan- "to stab";^[15] Köbler has *hwata-, *hwataz "quick, sharp, brave".^[16]

Morphology

An adjective.^[17][18] In Old Saxon it is found only as the second part of compounds.^[18]

Evidence

Old English has hwæt "sharp, lively, brisk, bold",^[17] and Old Saxon the compounds mēnhwat (“malicious”) and nīthhwat (“hostile”) in the Heliand.^[19][20] Kroonen also lists Old High German hwaz "fierce, sharp" and Middle Dutch wat (“sharp”),^[15] while Köbler has the Old High German adjective only as an unattested part of a compound beside Old Saxon mēnhwat.^[21] Van Helten tentatively explains the Malberg glosses ⟨uuadreto⟩, ⟨uuadredo⟩ "stallion" from a reading *huuatredun, a compound of *hwat "strong" and *redun.^[22]

Meanings

1. quick, sharp, brave^[2]

Old English also used the adjective for "lively, bold",^[23] and Old Saxon in compounds for "hostile".^[20]

Derivatives

• *hwattjan "to sharpen, to whet", which Wiktionary reconstructs from Proto-Germanic *hwatjaną, formed from *hwataz;^[24] Köbler too sets up a verb *hwatjan beside the adjective.^[25]

Reflexes

• Old English: hwæt (“sharp, lively, brisk, bold”)^[17]
• Old Saxon: only in compounds such as nīthhwat (“hostile”)^[20]