*jukkjan

Reconstruction

Ringe and Taylor reconstruct *jukkjan "to itch" for Proto-West Germanic,^[1] and Wiktionary has the same form.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *jukjaną (“to itch”),^[3][4] which Kroonen cites as *jukjan-, Orel as *jukkjanan, and Köbler, with question marks, as *jukjan or *jukkjan.^[3][4][5] Kroonen calls it a jan-verb of West Germanic, with the third singular *jukjeþi and third plural *jukjanþi; the *j was lost before front vowels, so that after West Germanic gemination the paradigm alternated between *jukiþi and *jukkjanþi, which explains the difference between German jucken and Dutch jeuken.^[3] EWA likewise derives West Germanic *jukk-je/a- from Proto-Germanic *juk(k)-je/a-.^[6] In Old English the umlauted vowel was unrounded between *j and the palatal geminate: *jukkjan gave *jyċċan and then Old English ġiċċan.^[1]

Morphology

A weak verb of class I.^[7][6] Kroonen suggests that the verb took an oblique subject, as in *mike jukjeþi "I have an itch".^[3]

Evidence

EWA gives cognates of Old High German jucken only in the other West Germanic languages, and calls the Gothic form cited in the OED a ghost word.^[6] Old Saxon jukkian glosses Latin prurire in glosses, in the forms ⟨iukid⟩ and ⟨iukke⟩,^[8] among them glosses on Prudentius.^[7] The Old High German verb is recorded in glosses from the 9th century.^[6]

Competing analyses

The further origin is uncertain: Kroonen finds no certain etymology, and Köbler gives the Old English verb as of unknown origin, perhaps.^[3][9] Kroonen thinks a connection with Proto-Germanic *jukkōną (“to hop, to run”) conceivable, comparing Alemannic and Palatinate jucken (“to jerk”).^[3] EWA reports that, because the verb also means "to jump" in some German dialects such as Swabian, it has been connected with Middle High German jouchen (“to chase, to drive”) and a Gothic verb "to fight"; it finds nothing against this in the sound, and bridges the meanings by a field "to move restlessly, to fidget, to itch".^[6] Wiktionary names both Proto-Germanic *jukkōną and Proto-Germanic *jeukāną (“to fight, to overcome”) as possible relatives.^[2]

Meanings

1. to itch^[1][2]

Old High German also used the verb for "to scratch", "to rub" and "to tickle".^[10]

Derivatives

• Kroonen derives the nouns Old English gycða (“itch”) and Old High German jukkido (“itching, scabies”) from *jukiþan-.^[3][11]

Reflexes

• Old English: gyccan (“to itch”)^[9]
• Old Saxon: jukkian (“to itch”)^[8]
• Old High German: jucken (“to itch, to scratch, to rub”)^[6]

References

1. ^ a b c Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 225
2. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *jukkjan
3. ^ a b c d e f g Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 274
4. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 207
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *jukjan
6. ^ 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. jucken
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. jukkian
8. ^ a b Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. jukkian
9. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gyccan
10. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. jukken
11. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. jukkido