𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐍃

Forms

𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐍃 (taikns), a feminine noun of the i-stem declension.^[1][2][3] The Wulfila project records the accusative plural 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌹𐌽𐍃 (taiknins) seven times, 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽 (taikn) six times, the genitive plural 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌴 (taikne) five times, 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐍃 (taikns), 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌴𐌹𐍃 (taikneis) and 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌹𐌼 (taiknim) twice each and the dative singular 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌰𐌹 (taiknai) once.^[4] Feist records a neuter 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽 (taikn) beside the feminine, only at 2 Thessalonians 1:5.^[5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *taikniz (“sign”),^[6][7] beside the neuter Proto-Germanic *taikną of the other languages: Old Norse teikn, Old English tācn, Old Frisian tēken, Old Saxon tēkan and Old High German zeihhan.^[8][9][3] Kroonen derives both from a geminated root, with the Gothic i-stem giving rise to the verb 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (taiknjan, “to show”).^[8] Casaretto finds no Germanic base word for it.^[3] It is usually set beside 𐌲𐌰𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌷𐌰𐌽 (gateihan, “to announce”), from Proto-Indo-European *deik- (“to show”), which requires a variant Proto-Indo-European *deig- with no further support in Germanic.^[3] Orel calls it a phonetically irregular derivative of Proto-Germanic *tīxanan.^[3][9] Feist finds the same variant in Ancient Greek δεῖγμα (deîgma, “sample, example”) and perhaps in Latin digitus (“finger”).^[5] Uhlenbeck compares dīgnus (“worthy”).^[5][10]

Attestation

The Wulfila project counts 25 tokens, eight of them ambiguous, in John, Luke, Mark, 1 and 2 Corinthians, 2 Thessalonians and the Skeireins.^[4] Köbler counts 21 attestations.^[7] Fifteen are in manuscript CA, two in the Speyer fragment, four in A, three in B and one in E.^[4] The first in canonical order is John 6:2.^[4] In all twenty tokens that PROIEL aligns it renders Ancient Greek σημεῖον (sēmeîon).^[11][7] John 6:2 reads unte gaseƕun taiknins þozei gatawida bi siukaim, "because they had seen the signs that he did on the sick".^[12]

Meanings

1. A sign, token, indication, for σημεῖον^[1][2][6]
2. A miracle, a wonder^[7][2][13]

Word family

• 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (taiknjan, “to show”)
• 𐌲𐌰𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (gataiknjan, “to show, teach”)
• 𐌿𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽 (ustaiknjan, “to designate, show”)
• 𐌿𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 (ustaikneins, “showing, proof”)

Borrowings into other languages

• Vulgar Latin: *tacca, an uncertain derivation, the source of Italian tacca, Spanish tacha, Catalan taca and French tache^[6]

Related words

• 𐌲𐌰𐍄𐌴𐌹𐌷𐌰𐌽 (gateihan, “to announce”)

References

1. ^ a b Streitberg, Wilhelm (1910), Die gotische Bibel, II: Gotisch-griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. taikns
2. ^ a b c Regan, Brian T. (1974), Dictionary of the Biblical Gothic Language, Phoenix: Wulfila House, p. 150
3. ^ a b c d e Casaretto, Antje (2004), Nominale Wortbildung der gotischen Sprache: Die Derivation der Substantive, Heidelberg: Winter
4. ^ a b c d 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. ^ a b c Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. taikns
6. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. 𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌺𐌽𐍃
7. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. taikns
8. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 506
9. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 399
10. ^ Uhlenbeck, C. C. (1900), Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 2nd ed., Amsterdam: Müller, p. 145
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. Jn 6:2
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. 426