Etymologically
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talán

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Pronunciation

  • [ˈtɒlaːn][1]

Forms

talán[1] The old form talám and the shortened tán (from 1602) stand beside it; dialects have tálá, talánd, taláng, táng and tám.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It arose in Hungarian from ⟨találom⟩ “I judge, I think”, the first person singular present of the verb talál “to find”, in its sense “to judge, consider”, by contraction.[2][3][5][1] It was at first a short main clause before an object clause without a conjunction (“I think, ...”), and became an adverb when the boundary between the clauses shifted; hiszen, lám and hadd developed in the same way.[2][5] The change of final /m/ to /n/ is the same as in ⟨hiszem⟩ > ⟨hiszen⟩.[2][3][5]

The shorter tán is a further contraction, like bár and hisz; ÚESz thinks it may be much older than its first record of 1602.[2][3][5] The dialect forms ⟨talánd⟩, ⟨taláng⟩ and ⟨táng⟩ have an added final consonant without meaning, as in ⟨ittend⟩ and ⟨osztáng⟩.[2][3]

The compound talántán “perhaps”, joining the full and the short form, is recorded earlier than the simple word, from the Jókai Codex.[2][3][5] TESz rejects the view that its second element is the privative suffix -talan.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The compound netalamtal “lest perhaps” appears in the Jókai Codex, written after 1372 and copied about 1448.[2][3] The simple word is first recorded in the Birk Codex of 1474, as talam: ha kedig a ʒoror akarna, de talam nem alkoʒik “but if the sister should want to, yet perhaps she does not agree”.[2][3] The sense is already “perhaps, possibly”.[2]

Semantic evolution

The word has meant “perhaps” throughout its history.[2][3] The Transylvanian records of the 16th and 17th centuries show it for something that may happen, for a likely supposition (“probably”), and in conditional sentences (“possibly, if by chance”).[6] A German–Latin–Hungarian word list glosses Latin forsan with talan.[7] Baróti Szabó's dictionary of 1792 has the verb talámozni “to answer with perhapses”.[8]

In the modern language it also colours questions that express doubt or surprise, and, often with bizony, ironic reproaches and threats.[4]

Timeline

  • After 1372 (copy of about 1448) – the compound netalamtal in the Jókai Codex.[2][3]
  • 1474 – talam in the Birk Codex.[2][3]
  • 1555 – nettallan “lest perhaps”.[2][3]
  • 1572 – the first of the Transylvanian records.[6]
  • 1584 – the form talánd in a letter.[2][3]
  • 1602 – the shortened tán.[2][3]
  • 1792 – talámozni “to answer with perhapses” in Baróti Szabó's dictionary.[8]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. perhaps, maybe: it may happen that, with hope or fear for the future: Holnap talán eláll az eső.[4][1]
  2. Marking a supposition as fairly likely: Talán már hazaért.[4]
  3. In conditional clauses: if by chance: Ha talán késnék, ne várjatok meg.[4]
  4. Colouring an ironic or indignant remark, a threat or a reproach, often with bizony: Talán bizony én vagyok a hibás?[4]
  5. In questions expressing doubt or surprise: Talán nem hiszel nekem?[4]

Word family

  • talántán
  • netalán
  • tán

Usage notes

Tán is the colloquial short form and talám is obsolete.[4] The dialect talántán means the same.[9][3]

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 Benkő, Loránd (ed.) (1967–1976), A magyar nyelv történeti-etimológiai szótára, 3 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, p. 3, 827
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Gerstner, Károly (ed.) (2006–), Új magyar etimológiai szótár, Budapest: Nyelvtudományi Kutatóközpont; online at uesz.nytud.hu
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Bárczi, Géza; Országh, László (eds.) (1959–1962), A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára, 7 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; online at ertelmezo.oszk.hu
  5. ^ a b c d e Zaicz, Gábor (ed.) (2006), Etimológiai szótár: magyar szavak és toldalékok eredete, Budapest: Tinta Könyvkiadó
  6. ^ a b Szabó T., Attila (ed.) (1975–2014), Erdélyi magyar szótörténeti tár, 14 vols., Bukarest: Kriterion / Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó / Kolozsvár: Erdélyi Múzeum-Egyesület, p. 12, 843
  7. ^ Berrár, Jolán; Károly, Sándor (1984), Régi magyar glosszárium: szótárak, szójegyzékek és glosszák egyesített szótára, Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó
  8. ^ a b Baróti Szabó, Dávid (1792), Kisded szó-tár, 2nd ed., Kassa / Komárom, p. 226
  9. ^ Bálint, Sándor (1957), Szegedi szótár, 2 vols., Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, p. 2, 536