houden

Forms

houden (past hield, plural hielden; past participle gehouden)^[2][1] In the 16th and 17th centuries the past was still often helt, hilt, plural helden, hilden, the usual Middle Dutch forms.^[2] Colloquial Dutch has houwen and the past hiel, and by confusion with houwen “to hew” also hieuw.^[2] Middle Dutch also had an eastern variant helden.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch houden, earlier halden, inherited from Old Dutch haldan, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *haldan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *haldaną.^[4][1] Its ⟨ou⟩ developed from ⟨al⟩ before ⟨d⟩, the same change as in koud.^[4] The same verb is Old Saxon haldan (Middle Low German ⟨hōlden⟩), Old High German haltan (modern German halten), Old Frisian halda, Old English healdan (modern English hold), Old Norse halda (modern Swedish hålla) and Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌻𐌳𐌰𐌽 (haldan, “to tend (cattle)”).^[4][5][6] The original meaning was probably the Gothic one, to tend or herd cattle, but the Germanic languages already show a wide range of later senses.^[4][5][2]

Its further origin is very uncertain.^[4] If the oldest sense was herding, it may be compared with Ancient Greek κέλλω (kéllō, “I drive”), Ancient Greek βουκόλος (boukólos, “cowherd”), Sanskrit कलयति (kaláyati, “drives (cattle), holds, carries”) and perhaps Latin celer (“swift”), from a root Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“to drive”);^[5][6][7] the EWN considers this kinship unlikely.^[4] Wiktionary also mentions a connection with Proto-Indo-European *ḱel- (“to hide”).^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old Dutch has the prefixed participle behaldan “kept safe, saved” in the Wachtendonck Psalms of the 10th century,^[4][8] and the Egmond Willeram of about 1100 uses haldan for keeping something in store for someone: Allerslahta ouaz niwa ande ald hauon ich thir gehaldon, “all kinds of fruit, new and old, I have kept for you”.^[9] In Middle Dutch hof … halden “to hold court” is recorded in Limburg in 1200, and houdet “keeps, does not give up” in 1236.^[4][10]

Semantic evolution

Middle Dutch used the verb for holding fast and holding prisoner, keeping and preserving, tending, owning, governing, keeping a law, holding a feast, considering, and also for worshipping and loving.^[10][3] The WNT notes that a sense of watching over or taking care of something can still be felt in nearly all its later uses.^[2]

Houden van “to love, to like” has a feudal background: in the Middle Ages houden van meant to hold land in fief from someone, to be his vassal, which led to “to care about someone” and finally “to love”.^[11][12] The WNT records Ick houwer niet of “I don't care for it”, said of drinking, in 1616.^[2] The paired hebben ende houden “to have and to hold”, for lasting possession, gave modern iemands hebben en houden, all a person owns.^[11] In 1681 Winschoten noted the sailors' phrase die koopman kan het niet houden, meaning the merchant has to go out of business.^[13]

The verb lives on in Afrikaans hou, Negerhollands hou and how, Skepi Dutch how and Berbice Dutch hau.^[1][14] De Vreese criticised houden van for French tenir de “to take after” as a gallicism.^[15]

Timeline

• 901–1000 – Old Dutch behaldan “saved” appears in the Wachtendonck Psalms.^[4][8]
• c. 1100 – The Willeram uses gehaldon “kept”.^[9]
• 1200 – Hof … halden “to hold court” is recorded in Limburg.^[4][10]
• 1236 – The form houdet “keeps” is recorded.^[4]
• 1285 – A West Flemish text uses the verb for worshipping an idol.^[10]
• 1616 – Ick houwer niet of “I don't care for it” is recorded.^[2]
• 1681 – Winschoten records het niet kunnen houden “to go out of business”.^[13]

Meanings

Verb

1. To keep, not to give up: Je mag dat boek houden.^[16][1][17]
2. To hold, not to let go: Hij hield de ladder stevig vast.^[16]
3. To stop, prevent from going on, especially in zijn mond houden “to keep quiet”.^[16]
4. To keep an animal: Mijn buren houden kippen.^[16][1]
5. To keep in a position or state: Houd de deur dicht.^[16]
6. To keep to, observe: Ze hield zich aan haar belofte.^[16][1]
7. To hold an event: De club houdt elk jaar een feest.^[16][1]
8. To run a business: Haar ouders hielden een café.^[16]
9. (intransitive) To hold, stay fast: Het touw hield niet.^[16]
10. houden van To love, to like: Ik hou van appeltaart.^[1][2]
11. houden voor To consider, take for: Ik hield hem voor zijn broer.^[1]

Word family

• houder
• houding
• houdbaar
• behouden
• onthouden
• onderhouden
• ophouden
• aanhouden
• volhouden
• huishouden
• boekhouden
• stadhouder
• wethouder

Related words

• English hold
• German halten

Usage notes

In the Dutch of Amsterdam Jews waar hou je? meant “how far have you got?”, in reading or prayer, after Yiddish haltn.^[18] In Surinamese Dutch houden also means “to look after, keep safe for someone”.^[19]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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
3. ^ a b Verwijs, Eelco; Verdam, Jacob (1885–1929), Middelnederlandsch woordenboek, 11 vols., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff; gtb.ivdnt.org
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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
5. ^ a b c Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
6. ^ a b Franck, Johannes; Wijk, Nicolaas van (1912), Franck's Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 2nd ed., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
7. ^ Vries, Jan de; Tollenaere, Félicien de (2004), Etymologisch woordenboek: onze woorden, hun oorsprong en ontwikkeling, 23rd ed., Utrecht: Het Spectrum, p. 170
8. ^ a b Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
9. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org
10. ^ a b c d 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 Stoett, F. A. (1923–1925), Nederlandsche spreekwoorden, spreekwijzen, uitdrukkingen en gezegden, 4th ed., 3 vols., Zutphen: Thieme
12. ^ Veen, P. A. F. van; Sijs, Nicoline van der (1997), Etymologisch woordenboek: de herkomst van onze woorden, 2nd ed., Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Lexicografie
13. ^ a b Winschoten, Wigardus à (1681), Seeman: behelsende een grondige uitlegging van de Neederlandse konst- en spreekwoorden, voor soo veel die uit de seevaart sijn ontleend, Leiden
14. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
15. ^ Vreese, Willem de (1899), Gallicismen in het Zuidnederlandsch, Gent: Siffer
16. ^ a b c d e f g h i Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
17. ^ Algemeen Nederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; anw.ivdnt.org
18. ^ Kamp, Jacob van de; Wijk, Jacob van der (2006), Koosjer Nederlands: Joodse woorden in de Nederlandse taal, Amsterdam: Contact
19. ^ Donselaar, J. van (1989), Woordenboek van het Surinaams-Nederlands, Muiderberg: Coutinho