Etymologically
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ott

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Pronunciation

Forms

ott[1] The longer form ottan is as old as ott; regional variants include ottég, ottanék, ottand, ött and utt.[2][3]

Etymology

It is a case form that became fixed: the ⟨o⟩ variant of the demonstrative az “that” with the locative suffix ⟨-t⟩, answering the question hol “where?”.[2][3][4][1] The single ⟨t⟩ was doubled between vowels, and the double consonant then spread to the end of the word as well.[2] ÚESz takes ⟨o⟩ for the original form of the demonstrative.[3] The same stem is in oly and onnan, and itt is formed in the same way.[2][3][5]

The longer ⟨ottan⟩ adds a second locative ⟨-n⟩, as in ⟨itten⟩; variants such as ⟨ottég⟩ and ⟨ottanék⟩ take an emphatic element.[2][3] TESz rejects the view that the word comes from a variant ⟨ad⟩ ~ ⟨od⟩ of the pronoun.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the Jókai Codex, written after 1372 and copied about 1448: ott fekegy penetenczedert “lie there for your penance”, with ottan in the same text.[2][3] The sense is “at that place”, which TESz takes to be the original one.[2]

Semantic evolution

Like mihelyt and nyomban, the word passed from place to time: ott meant “then; at once” in the Munich Codex (copied 1466), and ottan “on the spot, immediately” already in the Jókai Codex.[2][3] The doubled ottan-ottan meant “often, here and there” (1531).[2][3] In the 16th and 17th centuries ott and ottan also served as mere modifiers: “well, indeed” (about 1550), “at least” (from 1585), “or” (1604) and “though” (1611).[2][3] Indeed survives as a dialect sense.[6]

The adjective ottani “of that place” is recorded from 1783.[2][4] The ÉrtSz notes a colloquial use in place of a pronoun, pointing at a person instead of naming or addressing them.[7]

Timeline

  • After 1372 (copy of about 1448) – ott and ottan in the Jókai Codex.[2][3]
  • 1466 – ot “then; at once” in the Munich Codex (text written after 1416).[2]
  • 1515 – otan in a letter.[2][3]
  • 1531 – ottan-ottan “often” in the Teleki Codex.[2][3]
  • 1604 – ottan “or” in Szenczi Molnár's dictionary.[2][3]
  • 1783 – ottani “of that place” in the Magyar Hírmondó.[2]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. there: at that place, farther from the speaker, often with another word of place: ott fent a padláson “up there in the attic”.[7][1]
  2. At the place mentioned or known: in that house, town, region or country, or at someone's home: Tavaly is ott nyaraltunk.[7]
  3. At an imagined distant place, or at a time long past or still to come.[7]
  4. In that community or company.[7]
  5. In a main clause, pointing to the place given by a clause with ahol, ahonnan or ahová: Ott lakik, ahol a nagyanyja lakott.[7]
  6. (colloquial, rude) Pointing at a person instead of addressing or naming them: Maga ott, álljon félre![7]
  7. (dialectal) indeed.[6]

Word family

  • ottani
  • ugyanott
  • amott
  • holott

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Benkő, Loránd (ed.) (1967–1976), A magyar nyelv történeti-etimológiai szótára, 3 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, p. 2, 1104
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Gerstner, Károly (ed.) (2006–), Új magyar etimológiai szótár, Budapest: Nyelvtudományi Kutatóközpont; online at uesz.nytud.hu
  4. ^ a b Zaicz, Gábor (ed.) (2006), Etimológiai szótár: magyar szavak és toldalékok eredete, Budapest: Tinta Könyvkiadó
  5. ^ Bárczi, Géza (1941), Magyar szófejtő szótár, Budapest: Királyi Magyar Egyetemi Nyomda, p. 126
  6. ^ a b B. Lőrinczy, Éva (ed.) (1979–2010), Új magyar tájszótár, 5 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, p. 4, 219
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Bárczi, Géza; Országh, László (eds.) (1959–1962), A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára, 7 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; online at ertelmezo.oszk.hu