*sorgu

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *sorgu.^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *surgō (“worry, sorrow”),^[2] which Kroonen cites as *surgō-, Orel as *surʒō and Köbler as *surgō, *swurgō.^[3][4][5] Ringe and Taylor list the word among the examples of a Northwest Germanic change by which stressed *u was lowered to *o when the next syllable had a nonhigh vowel.^[2] For the accusative and genitive singular they reconstruct Proto-West Germanic *sorgā, from Proto-Germanic *surgǭ, *surgōz.^[6]

Morphology

A feminine ō-stem.^[7][8] Old High German also has weak forms, and EWA calls it an ō(n)-stem there.^[9][10]

Evidence

The word is attested in all the West Germanic languages: Old English sorg,^[11][7] Old Frisian sorge,^[12] Old Saxon sorga in the Heliand,^[13][8] Old Dutch sorga, glossing Latin cūra in the 9th-century Middle Franconian Psalms,^[14] and Old High German sorga, from the 8th century.^[10] ONW also has it in Williram's commentary of about 1100.^[15]

Competing analyses

Old High German also has the spelling sworga, and Köbler heads the Old High German word so.^[9] Wiktionary derives Proto-Germanic *surgō from an earlier *swurgō and sets up a Proto-West Germanic *sworgu beside *sorgu.^[16] EWA instead takes the forms with ⟨sw-⟩ in Tatian and Otfrid to be analogical, made after unrecorded forms with the full grade of the root, rather than original,^[10] and Kroonen too allows that the Old High German form may have an analogical *sw-.^[3]

Meanings

1. worry, sorrow^[2][1]

Old English also used the word for "pain" and "misery",^[11] Old Frisian for "care, provision",^[12] and Old High German for "diligence" and "toil".^[10]

Derivatives

• *sorgēn "to worry, to be sad", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[17] Ringe and Taylor reconstruct Proto-West Germanic *sorgē-, continued by Old High German sorgēn, while Old English sorgian and Old Saxon sorgon otherwise follow class II.^[18]
• *sorgufull "sorrowful", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[19] Orel sets up Proto-Germanic *surʒa-fullaz for Old Norse and Old English sorh-full.^[4]

Reflexes

• Old English: sorg (“sorrow, pain, grief, misery”)^[11]
• Old Frisian: sorge (“care, worry, grief”)^[12]
• Old Saxon: sorga (“sorrow, worry, grief”)^[20]
• Old Dutch: sorga (“worry, care”)^[15]
• Old High German: sorga (“worry, concern, sorrow, toil, diligence”)^[10]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *sorgu
2. ^ a b c Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 27
3. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 493
4. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 388
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *surgō
6. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 299
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. sorg
8. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. sorga
9. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. sworga
10. ^ a b c d e 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. sorga
11. ^ a b c Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. sorg
12. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. sorge
13. ^ Berr, Samuel (1971), An Etymological Glossary to the Old Saxon Heliand, Berne / Frankfurt: Herbert Lang, p. 372
14. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. sorga
15. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org, p. s.v. sorga
16. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *surgō
17. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *sorgēn
18. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 162
19. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *sorgufull
20. ^ Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. sorga