Etymologically
Log in

bij

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 21 October 2026 at 14:56. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

bij1 by, at

Pronunciation

Forms

bij[1]

Etymology

The preposition is inherited from Middle Dutch bi, inherited from Old Dutch bī, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *bī, inherited from Proto-Germanic *bi (“by, at”).[2][1][3] The same word is Old Saxon bī, Old High German bī (modern German bei), Old Frisian bi (modern West Frisian by), Old English bī (modern English by) and Gothic 𐌱𐌹 (bi, “around, about”).[2][4][5] The vowel was originally short, as in Gothic and the unstressed prefix be-, and was lengthened at the end of the stressed word, later becoming the diphthong written ⟨ij⟩.[4][5][6][7]

Outside Germanic it is compared with Latin ob (“towards, against”), Sanskrit अभि (abhí, “towards”) and Old Church Slavonic объ (obŭ, “about, around”), from Proto-Indo-European *obʰi- (“towards, at (as an attack)”), although only Germanic points to a form ⟨*bʰi-⟩.[2][5][6] Another view links it with Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi- (“around, on both sides”), the source of om and amb-;[2][4][8][9] Gothic, which uses the word for Ancient Greek ἀμφί (amphí, “around”), supports this, and De Vries thought that both roots may have merged in Germanic.[2][4][8][9] Wiktionary also mentions a zero grade of Proto-Indo-European *h₁épi (“on, at”), voiced by Verner's law, as in ἐπί (epí).[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the 10th-century Wachtendonck Psalms Old Dutch bi means “by, near”, as in bi themo dica “by the dyke”, and be thiu means “therefore”.[2][3] The same text uses it for “according to”, of God repaying each man bi uuerkon sinin “according to his works”.[3] The Middle Dutch preposition is first recorded in 1201 in the Lower Rhine area, and the adverb in 1240 in Limburg, glossing Latin cominus “close by”.[10]

Semantic evolution

Old Dutch already used bī of time, of accordance and of cause.[3] Middle Dutch extended it to “over”, as in bi seeuwen “over the sea” (1285), “by means of”, as in bi welker list “by which trick” (1340–60), to distance, and to duration, as in bi vele daghen “for many days” (around 1400).[2] The MNW notes that the original sense “around”, kept by the prefix in verbs such as bekransen and belegeren, had already been lost by the preposition.[11]

In the 17th century bij still meant “along”, as in by der straten te wandelen “to walk along the streets” (1600), and with points of the compass “in the”, as in by Zuyden “in the south” (1598), a use now kept only in the unstressed form, as in benoorden.[8] The seaman's bij de wind “close-hauled” is recorded in 1671.[8] The adverb came to mean “conscious” and “up to date”, and in Belgium “carried along”.[12] In Surinamese Dutch, as in Belgium, bij with gaan means “to (someone's place)”, a use that is dated in the Netherlands.[13]

Danish, Norwegian and Swedish bi and the verbal prefix bi- were borrowed from Dutch or Low German, and the word passed into Negerhollands (bi, bie) and Skepi Dutch.[14][1]

Timeline

  • 901–1000 – Bi themo dica “by the dyke” in the Wachtendonck Psalms.[2][15]
  • 1201 – The Middle Dutch preposition in the Lower Rhine area.[10]
  • 1240 – The adverb bj “close by” in a Limburg glossary.[10][2]
  • 1285 – Bi seeuwen “over the sea”.[2]
  • 1340–60 – Bi welker list “by which trick”.[2]
  • 1574 – The spelling bij in Kiliaan.[2]
  • 1598 – By Zuyden “in the south”.[8]
  • 1671 – By de windt “close-hauled”.[8]

Meanings

Preposition

  1. At, with, at the home of: Ze logeert bij haar tante.[1][8]
  2. near, close to, by: Het hotel ligt bij de haven.[1][8]
  3. At the time of, during: bij zonsopgang.[3][1]
  4. (Suriname, Belgium) To, towards a person: Ik ga morgen bij mijn oom.[13][1]
  5. (obsolete) By means of, through.[1][2]

Adverb

  1. Conscious: Na de operatie was ze snel weer bij.[12][16]
  2. Up to date, at the point where one should be: Ik ben weer bij met de post.[12][1]
  3. (colloquial) Well informed, quick-witted.[12]
  4. In a pronominal adverb, standing for the preposition with its object: Kun je erbij?[12][16]
  5. (Belgium) Carried along, with one: Heb je je paspoort bij?[12]
  6. As part of a separable verb, alongside or in addition: bijvoegen, bijstaan.[1][16]

Word family

  • bijna
  • bijeen
  • bijzonder
  • bijstaan
  • bijwonen
  • bijvoegen
  • bijzin
  • bijrol
  • bijsluiter
  • dichtbij

bij2 bee

Pronunciation

Forms

bij f (plural bijen, diminutive bijtje n)[1] Southern Dutch bie, plural bieën.[8]

Etymology

The insect is inherited from Middle Dutch bie, inherited from Old Dutch *bīa, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *bijā, inherited from Proto-Germanic *bi(j)ō- (“bee”).[2][1][16] The same word is Old Saxon bī- (in bībrōd (“honeycomb”)), Old High German bīa (modern dialectal Beie), Old English bēo (modern English bee) and Old Norse bý (modern Swedish bi), and with an extension in ⟨-n-⟩ bina, bini and modern German Biene.[2][4][5]

Outside Germanic there are forms with other suffixes: with ⟨-t-⟩ Lithuanian bìtė and Welsh bydaf (“beehive”), with ⟨-k-⟩ Old Church Slavonic бьчела (bĭčela) (modern Russian пчела (pčela)), and with a different vowel Old Irish bech.[2][4] A root Proto-Indo-European *bʰey- (“bee”) has been assumed, but the EWN calls it doubtful: given where the word is found and its meaning, a substrate word adapted differently in each language is likely, as De Vries also thought.[2][4][1][6] Franck and Van Wijk linked it with the root of beven, and Grimm with that of bouwen, but De Vries and Van Haeringen found these links speculative.[5][4][9]

Middle Dutch ⟨ie⟩ does not normally become ⟨ij⟩: it fell together with /iː/, and was diphthongised with it, only in a few words where it stood at the end.[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old Dutch has the word only in the place name Bingart, now Bingerden in Gelderland, recorded in 970.[2][15] Middle Dutch bie “honeybee” is first recorded around 1240 in the Limburg glossary known as Bernardus.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

Middle Dutch niet twee bien “not two bees” meant “nothing at all”, as in a line of 1340 saying that Samson's strength did not help him a whit.[11] The bee stood for useful industry, and busy people were called bees from 1586 on.[8] The form bie lived on in the south and in Cats, and the diminutive bietje was used by many northern poets.[8]

In southern dialects the word can also mean a swarm of bees, and at Balinge in Drenthe it means a hive with its bees, while the insect itself is iem; see imker.[8][5] Van Dale has the phrase een bezige bij for a busy, active person.[12]

Timeline

  • 970 – Old Dutch place name Bingart.[2][15]
  • c. 1240 – Middle Dutch bie in Bernardus.[2][6]
  • 1301 – Nutte ende vromelijc alse die bie “useful and profitable as the bee”.[11]
  • 1340 – Niet twee bien “not a whit”.[11]
  • 1574 – The spelling bij in Kiliaan.[2]
  • 1586 – Busy people called bees.[8]
  • 1608 – A herb recommended against the stings of bees and wasps.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A bee, any insect of the family Apidae, which lives on nectar and pollen.[12][8][16]
  2. The honeybee, Apis mellifera: De bijen zwermen uit de korf.[2][8][16]
  3. (figurative) A busy, industrious person.[8][12]
  4. (dialectal) A swarm of bees, a hive with bees.[8][5]

Word family

  • bijenkorf
  • bijenteelt
  • bijenwas
  • bijenzwerm
  • bijenkoningin
  • bijker
  • honingbij
  • be-
  • om
  • imker
  • English by
  • German bei
  • English bee
  • German Biene

Usage notes

De Vreese condemned the Southern Dutch use of bij in phrases like leraar bij een athenaeum, where Dutch idiom wants aan, as an imitation of French près.[17] Jewish Dutch used bij in many expressions taken from Yiddish, such as the wish to unmarried wedding guests haast bij u!.[18]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p 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 s t u v w x Philippa, Marlies; Debrabandere, Frans; Quak, Arend; Schoonheim, Tanneke; Sijs, Nicoline van der (2003–2009), Etymologisch woordenboek van het Nederlands, 4 vols., Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press; online via etymologiebank.nl
  3. ^ a b c d e Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Franck, Johannes; Wijk, Nicolaas van (1912), Franck's Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 2nd ed., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  6. ^ a b c d e Vries, Jan de; Tollenaere, Félicien de (2004), Etymologisch woordenboek: onze woorden, hun oorsprong en ontwikkeling, 23rd ed., Utrecht: Het Spectrum, p. 72
  7. ^ Vercoullie, Jozef (1925), Beknopt etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 3rd ed., 's-Gravenhage / Gent: Nijhoff / Van Rysselberghe & Rombaut
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Vries, Matthias de; Winkel, L. A. te, et al. (1882–1998), Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal, 29 vols., 's-Gravenhage / Leiden: Nijhoff / Sijthoff / SDU; supplement 2001; gtb.ivdnt.org
  9. ^ a b c Haeringen, C. B. van (1936), Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal: Supplement, 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  10. ^ a b c Pijnenburg, W. J. J., et al. (2001), Vroegmiddelnederlands woordenboek: woordenboek van het Nederlands van de dertiende eeuw in hoofdzaak op basis van het Corpus-Gysseling, Leiden: Instituut voor Nederlandse Lexicologie; gtb.ivdnt.org
  11. ^ a b c d Verwijs, Eelco; Verdam, Jacob (1885–1929), Middelnederlandsch woordenboek, 11 vols., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff; gtb.ivdnt.org
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
  13. ^ a b Donselaar, J. van (1989), Woordenboek van het Surinaams-Nederlands, Muiderberg: Coutinho
  14. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
  15. ^ a b c Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
  16. ^ a b c d e f WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org
  17. ^ Vreese, Willem de (1899), Gallicismen in het Zuidnederlandsch, Gent: Siffer
  18. ^ Kamp, Jacob van de; Wijk, Jacob van der (2006), Koosjer Nederlands: Joodse woorden in de Nederlandse taal, Amsterdam: Contact