𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌸

Forms

𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌸 (haubiþ), a neuter noun of the a-stems, genitive 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌳𐌹𐍃 (haubidis).^[1][2][3] The Wulfila project counts 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌸 (haubiþ, 26 times), 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌳𐌰 (haubida, 6) and 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌳𐌹𐍃 (haubidis, 3).^[4] The final þ is written d twice, 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌳 (haubid), at John 19:2 and Luke 7:46.^[1][5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *haubudą (“head”),^[6] the word that gave Old Norse hǫfuð, Old English hēafod, Old Frisian hāved, Old Saxon hōbid and Old High German houbit.^[7] Köbler calls its etymology disputed.^[2] Wiktionary takes it back to Proto-Indo-European *káput-, the source of Latin caput (“head”).^[6] Kroonen points out that the Germanic forms vary between a root with the diphthong au and one without, and between two suffix vowels; the Latin noun and Old English hafola (“head”) show that the root without it is older, but the Gothic word proves that the other is Proto-Germanic too.^[7] He suggests an original paradigm from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂p-ut- in which the diphthong arose by metathesis in the oblique cases.^[7] Orel takes the forms with the diphthong as secondary variants, perhaps due to taboo, of *xaƀuđan.^[8] Uhlenbeck and Holthausen relate it by ablaut to Old Norse húfa (“cap”) and Old High German hūba (“cap”).^[9][10]

Attestation

Köbler counts 36 records and the Wulfila project 35 tokens, in Matthew, Luke, Mark, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Ephesians and Colossians; seventeen are in manuscript CA, fourteen in A, three in B and one in Car.^[2][4] The first reference is Matthew 5:36.^[4] PROIEL aligns it 31 times with Ancient Greek κεφαλή (kephalḗ).^[11] In the phrase haubiþ afmaitan it renders ἀποκεφαλίζω (apokephalízō, “to behead”), and haubiþ waihstins renders the "head of the corner", κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kephalḕ gōnías).^[2] Matthew 6:17 reads iþ þu fastands salbo haubiþ þein jah ludja þeina þwah, "but you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face".^[12]

Meanings

1. head (for κεφαλή)^[1][2][6]
2. in haubiþ waihstins: the cornerstone (Mark 12:10, Luke 20:17)^[2][13]
3. in haubiþ afmaitan: to behead (Mark 6:27, Luke 9:9)^[13][2]

Word family

• 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌸𐍅𐌿𐌽𐌳𐍃 (haubiþwunds)

References

1. ^ a b c Streitberg, Wilhelm (1910), Die gotische Bibel, II: Gotisch-griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. haubiþ
2. ^ a b c d e f g Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. haubiþ
3. ^ Lambdin, Thomas O. (2006), An Introduction to the Gothic Language, Eugene, Or.: Wipf and Stock, p. 177
4. ^ 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
5. ^ Grienberger, Theodor von (1900), Untersuchungen zur gotischen Wortkunde, Sitzungsberichte der kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien, phil.-hist. Classe 142, Wien
6. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌸
7. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 215
8. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 165
9. ^ Uhlenbeck, C. C. (1900), Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 2nd ed., Amsterdam: Müller, p. 74
10. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Gotisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. haubiþ
11. ^ 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
12. ^ 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 6:17
13. ^ a b Skeat, Walter W. (1868), A Moeso-Gothic Glossary, with an Introduction, an Outline of Moeso-Gothic Grammar, and a List of Anglo-Saxon and Old and Modern English Words Etymologically Connected with Moeso-Gothic, London: Asher