𐌼𐌹𐌽𐍃

Forms

𐌼𐌹𐌽𐍃 (mins), an indeclinable comparative adverb.^[1][2] At 2 Corinthians 12:15 manuscript B writes 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌶 (minz).^[3][1] It is the adverb belonging to the comparative adjective 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌽𐌹𐌶𐌰 (minniza).^[4][5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *minniz (“less”),^[6][7][8] with Old Norse minnr, Old Frisian minn, Old Saxon min and Old High German min,^[7] and Old English min.^[9][8] Feist explains it with the Indo-European comparative ending also seen in Latin magis (“more”).^[9] The base is Proto-Indo-European *mi-n-u-is, a comparative to a stem with the present suffix ⟨-nu-⟩ from the root *mey- (“small; to diminish”);^[6][7][9] Orel explains the Germanic ⟨nn⟩ from ⟨nw⟩, after Osthoff.^[8] Related words outside Germanic are minus (“less”), minor (“smaller”) and minuō (“to diminish”), Ancient Greek μινύθω (minúthō, “to lessen”) and Proto-Slavic *mьňьjь (“smaller”).^[9][8][7]

Attestation

The Wulfila project counts five tokens, all in the Epistles: three at 2 Corinthians 12:11 and 12:15 and two at 1 Timothy 5:9, in manuscripts A and B.^[2] Among its three PROIEL alignments are Ancient Greek ἐλάσσων (elássōn) and Ancient Greek ἥσσων (hḗssōn);^[10] Köbler adds Ancient Greek ὑστερέω (husteréō) for the phrase mins haban.^[3] The first record is 2 Corinthians 12:11, ni waihtai mins habaida þaim ufar filu apaustaulum, "in nothing was I behind the very great apostles".^[11]

Meanings

1. less, to a smaller degree.^[1][12][6]
2. In mins haban with the dative: to be inferior to, fall behind.^[13][3]

Word family

• 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌶𐌽𐌰𐌽 (minznan)

Related words

• 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌽𐌹𐌶𐌰 (minniza, “smaller, less”)
• 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌽𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃 (minnists, “smallest, least”)

References

1. ^ a b c Streitberg, Wilhelm (1910), Die gotische Bibel, II: Gotisch-griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. mins
2. ^ a b 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. mins
4. ^ Uhlenbeck, C. C. (1900), Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 2nd ed., Amsterdam: Müller, p. 112
5. ^ Schulze, Ernst (1867), Gothisches Wörterbuch nebst Flexionslehre, Züllichau: Darnmann, p. 127
6. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐍃
7. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 369
8. ^ a b c d Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 271
9. ^ a b c d Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. mins
10. ^ 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. 2Cor 12:11
12. ^ Regan, Brian T. (1974), Dictionary of the Biblical Gothic Language, Phoenix: Wulfila House, p. 111
13. ^ Balg, G. H. (1887–1889), A Comparative Glossary of the Gothic Language, with Especial Reference to English and German, Mayville, Wis.: the author, p. 284