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gaan

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Pronunciation

  • Netherlands: [xaːn][1]
  • Belgium: [ɣaːn][1]

Forms

gaan[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch gâen, inherited from Old Dutch gān, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *gān, inherited from Proto-Germanic *gāną (“to go”).[2][1][3] Kroonen sets up Proto-Germanic *gēn- and derives the southern forms from an athematic present such as *gēmi (“I go”), while Old English gān seems to need a stem *gai-, perhaps the prefix Proto-Germanic *ga- with the root of Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- (“to go”).[4] The same word is Old Saxon gān, Old High German gān, gēn (modern German gehen), Old Frisian gān (modern West Frisian gean), gān (modern English go) and Old Norse gá (Swedish gå).[2][5][4]

Beside it the Germanic languages had a reduplicating strong verb, Old Dutch gangan, Middle Dutch gangen, Old Saxon gangan, Old High German gangan, Old English gangan, Old Norse ganga and Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌰𐌽 (gaggan), to which the past tense ging and the noun gang belong.[2][5][6] Gothic used instead the old past 𐌹𐌳𐌳𐌾𐌰 (iddja).[5][4] Van Haeringen rejected the idea that the verb is a shortened form of the reduplicating verb, since its inflection looks very old.[7]

The source is Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁-, which also gave Ancient Greek κιχάνω (kikhánō, “to reach, overtake”), Sanskrit जहाति (jáhāti, “he leaves”) and Avestan zazāmi (“I let go”).[2][5][4] How a root meaning “to leave, let go” came to mean “to go” is not fully clear, and the comparison with Ancient Greek χῆρος (khêros, “bereft”) and Latin hērēs (“heir”) is vague.[5][8] The reduplicating verb is linked with Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰengʰ- (“to stride”), as in Lithuanian žengti (“to step”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Wachtendonck Psalms of the 10th century, Old Dutch gān means “to go on foot, walk”, as in gān sal ic an hūse thīnin “I shall go into your house”.[2][3] Middle Dutch has ginc stan “went to stand” around 1200 and gaen “to go, walk” in 1237.[2]

Semantic evolution

Gaan at first meant only “to walk”, of people, but it gradually took on the wider sense “to move”, and inanimate subjects.[2] Lopen then took over “to walk” in the north, but Belgian Dutch still uses gaan in that sense, as do Frisian, German and Swedish.[2] The old meaning survives in niet kunnen gaan of staan “to be bedridden” and in een uur gaans “an hour's walk”.[2][9]

The Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal (1872) found gaan with an infinitive for the near future mainly in Flemish writers and condemned it as a gallicism;[9][10] Van Dale now lists it as an auxiliary of the future.[9][10] The phrase ervoor gaan is a loan translation of English to go for it.[11]

The verb lives on in Afrikaans gaan, Petjo and Javindo (as ha); in Sranan Tongo gan means “to perish”.[12][1]

Timeline

  • 901–1000 – The Wachtendonck Psalms have Old Dutch gān.[2][13]
  • 1200 – Middle Dutch ginc stan “went to stand”, in the Servatius fragments.[2]
  • 1237 – Middle Dutch gaen “to go, walk”.[2]
  • 1285 – The infinitive used as a noun, gaen “walking, departure”, is recorded in West Flanders.[14]
  • 1838 – Een uur gaans “an hour's walk” and a Flemish future with gaan are quoted.[9]
  • 1872 – The Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal condemns the future with gaan as a gallicism.[9]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To go, move from one place to another: We gaan naar de markt.[10][1]
  2. To pass, of time.[10]
  3. To leave, depart.[10][1]
  4. To begin to do or undergo something: Hij ging zitten.[10][1]
  5. Of a device: to sound, ring: Daar gaat de bel.[10]
  6. To lead, extend, of a road or direction.[10][1]
  7. To proceed, go well or badly: Het gaat goed met haar.[10][1]
  8. To work, be possible: Dat gaat niet.[10][15]
  9. To get into a state: kapot gaan.[10]
  10. With over or om: to be about, concern: Waar gaat het om?[1]
  11. (Belgium) To walk.[2]
  12. (auxiliary) To be going to, forming a near future: Het gaat regenen.[10][15][1]

Word family

  • gang
  • gaande
  • gaandeweg
  • aangaan
  • afgaan
  • begaan
  • doorgaan
  • ingaan
  • meegaan
  • omgaan
  • ondergaan
  • ontgaan
  • opgaan
  • overgaan
  • uitgaan
  • vergaan
  • voorgaan
  • weggaan
  • doodgaan
  • teloorgaan

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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 Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org
  4. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d e Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
  6. ^ Vercoullie, Jozef (1925), Beknopt etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 3rd ed., 's-Gravenhage / Gent: Nijhoff / Van Rysselberghe & Rombaut
  7. ^ Haeringen, C. B. van (1936), Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal: Supplement, 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  8. ^ Franck, Johannes; Wijk, Nicolaas van (1912), Franck's Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 2nd ed., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  9. ^ a b c d e 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
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
  11. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2005), Groot leenwoordenboek, Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale
  12. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
  13. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
  14. ^ 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
  15. ^ a b WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org