ie

Forms

ie (unstressed, enclitic; also written ’ie)^[2][1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch -i, the enclitic form of the pronoun hi (“he”), which became hij when stressed.^[3][4][5] The Middle Dutch dictionary gives examples such as ⟨haddi⟩ “had he”, ⟨dedi⟩ “did he” and ⟨soudi⟩ “would he”, and notes that the spoken language still had ⟨zeiti⟩ and ⟨willi⟩.^[3] In the stressed pronoun the long /iː/ was diphthongised to the sound now written ⟨ij⟩, while the unstressed clitic kept the old vowel, as several dialects keep ⟨hi⟩ itself.^[6][5][4] Wiktionary therefore calls the clitic a doublet of the full pronoun.^[1]

The EWN notes that the stressed pronoun, unlike mij beside me or jij beside je, has no unstressed form *⟨he⟩ in the standard language, only the clitic form.^[4] A weakened ⟨hĕ⟩ is found in southern dialects.^[6] The pronoun itself is inherited from Old Dutch hē, hie, inherited from Proto-Germanic *hiz in Wiktionary's account.^[1] The EWN explains the initial /h/ as taken from a demonstrative particle added to an older pronoun Proto-Germanic *ez, *iz.^[4][1]

Semantic evolution

Enclitic -i was common in Middle Dutch, written together with the verb it followed.^[3] In modern Dutch ie is informal and enclitic, leaning on the word before it.^[2][5] Van Dale records the exclamation daar gaat ie!, said when one starts on something new.^[2]

Meanings

Pronoun

1. (informal) he: the unstressed form of hij, used after a verb or a conjunction: Weet jij of ie morgen komt?^[2][5]
2. (Holland, colloquial) you, an unstressed form of je.^[1]

Related words

• hij

Usage notes

An older adverb ie “ever, always” was spelled the same way.^[6][7] It goes back to Old Dutch io, glossing Latin semper in the 10th century, and is the source of the ie- in iemand, ieder and immer.^[7][3][1] The Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal says it was already going out of use in the 16th century, when ooit replaced it.^[6][7] Ie is also listed as an alternative form of the dialect pronoun iej “you”, taken from Low German.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
3. ^ a b c d Verwijs, Eelco; Verdam, Jacob (1885–1929), Middelnederlandsch woordenboek, 11 vols., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff; gtb.ivdnt.org
4. ^ a b c d 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 d WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org
6. ^ a b c d 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
7. ^ a b c Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org