𐌰𐌿𐌺

Forms

𐌰𐌿𐌺 (auk), an indeclinable conjunction.^[1][2] All 327 tokens counted by the Wulfila project have the form auk.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *auk (“also”),^[3] Kroonen's and Orel's *auke.^[4][5] The cognates are Old Norse auk, Old English ēac, Old Frisian āk, Old Saxon ōk and Old High German ouh,^[4] and the English word eke.^[3] Kroonen derives it from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eu with the emphatic particle *ǵe, also found in 𐌼𐌹𐌺 (mik, “me”), and compares Ancient Greek αὖ (aû, “again”) and αὖγε (aûge, “again”), Latin aut (“or”) and autem (“but”);^[4] Orel, Feist and Lehmann give the same analysis.^[5][6][7] Feist notes that others connect it with 𐌰𐌿𐌺𐌰𐌽 (aukan, “to increase”), which Uhlenbeck reports as the usual view;^[6][8] Wiktionary and Köbler trace it to the root of that verb, Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewg- (“to increase”).^[3][9] Lehmann rejects the link with aukan as a merely secondary association.^[7]

Attestation

The Wulfila project counts 327 tokens, in the Gospels, the Epistles, Nehemiah and the Skeireins, in manuscripts CA, A, B, C, Car, D, E and Lat5750.^[2] Köbler counts 288 records.^[9] Of its 266 tokens in PROIEL, it renders Ancient Greek γάρ (gár) 239 times and δέ (dé) 7 times.^[10] The first record is Matthew 5:18, which reads amen auk qiþa izwis, "for truly I say to you".^[11]

Meanings

1. for, since; for γάρ.^[1][12][10]
2. moreover, besides, also, but.^[12][9][3] Jah auk renders καὶ γάρ.^[9]

Related words

• 𐌰𐌿𐌺𐌰𐌽 (aukan, “to increase”)

Usage notes

Auk does not open its clause, except at John 9:30 and Skeireins 6:27; it usually stands second or third, and fourth only at John 16:22 and Romans 11:29.^[1] It follows a group of words that form one idea, as in batizo ist auk at Matthew 5:29.^[13]

References

1. ^ a b c Streitberg, Wilhelm (1910), Die gotische Bibel, II: Gotisch-griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. auk
2. ^ a b c De Herdt, Tom (2004–2026), Project Wulfila: digital edition of the Gothic Bible with lemma and morphological annotation, data release 2026-09-03, wulfila.be
3. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. 𐌰𐌿𐌺
4. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 42
5. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 29
6. ^ a b Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. auk
7. ^ a b Lehmann, Winfred P. (1986), A Gothic Etymological Dictionary, based on the third edition of Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache by Sigmund Feist, Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. auk
8. ^ Uhlenbeck, C. C. (1900), Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 2nd ed., Amsterdam: Müller, p. 20
9. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. auk
10. ^ a b Haug, Dag T. T. et al., PROIEL Treebank: The Gothic Bible (gothic-nt), 2023 release, Pragmatic Resources in Old Indo-European Languages, University of Oslo
11. ^ De Herdt, Tom (2004–2026), Project Wulfila: digital edition of the Gothic Bible with lemma and morphological annotation, data release 2026-09-03, wulfila.be, p. Mt 5:18
12. ^ a b Regan, Brian T. (1974), Dictionary of the Biblical Gothic Language, Phoenix: Wulfila House, p. 42
13. ^ Gabelentz, Hans Conon von der; Loebe, Julius (1843), Ulfilas: Veteris et Novi Testamenti versionis gothicae fragmenta quae supersunt, vol. II.1: Glossarium der gothischen Sprache, Leipzig: Brockhaus