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school

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school1 educational institution

Pronunciation

Forms

school f (plural scholen, diminutive schooltje n)[1]

Etymology

The educational institution is inherited from Middle Dutch schole, borrowed from Latin schola (“school”), which is borrowed from Ancient Greek σχολή (skholḗ, “school; earlier leisure spent in learning, study; originally leisure”).[2][1][3] The Greek noun is perhaps a derivative with an ⟨l⟩-suffix of the stem of ἔχω (ékhō, “to have, hold”).[2][3][4] De Vries thinks the word was probably taken over as early as the 6th century, along with church words such as klooster, monnik and non.[3]

The other West Germanic languages borrowed the Latin word too: Middle Low German schōle, Old High German scuola (modern German Schule), West Frisian skoalle and Old English scōl (modern English school); Old Norse skóli was taken from Middle Low German or Old English.[2][3] These forms reflect the later learned Latin pronunciation with a long ⟨ō⟩, which also gave the rare Middle Dutch scoel and some eastern dialect forms.[3][5] Franck and Van Wijk hold that the Dutch word came straight from Latin and probably not from Old French escole.[5] The doublets sjoel and skorro come from the same Latin source.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Middle Dutch schole is first recorded in the Bernardus glossary of 1240, from Limburg, glossing Latin scola in the senses “school”, “school building” and “teaching”.[6][2][7] In 1265–70 the life of Saint Lutgard says she heft gegaen ter minnen scholen, she has been to the school of love, taught by God himself.[2][6]

Semantic evolution

Middle Dutch used schole for the institution, the building, as in a Bruges text of 1284 naming the school of Saint Saviour's, and for teaching or doctrine in general.[2][6] Scole houden, to keep a school, meant to teach, as in a Dordrecht ordinance of 1292 that forbids anyone else to keep a school in the town.[6]

From 1642 the word is used for a group of people in art or learning who share views or methods, as in de Haagse school of painters;[2][8] school maken is to gain followers.[2][8] The phrase uit de school klappen, first of pupils telling what went on at school and then of anyone giving away secrets, is found from the 16th century.[9] In riding, school is the regular practice of all the movements.[8]

Dutch, or Low German, passed the word to Danish skole and Swedish skola, and Dutch carried it to Indonesia and the Caribbean: Ambonese Malay skolah, Papiamentu skol, Sranan Tongo skoro.[10][1] Afrikaans has skool, and Xhosa, Zulu and Sotho took the word from Afrikaans or English.[10][1]

Timeline

  • 1240 – Middle Dutch schole glosses Latin scola in the Bernardus glossary.[6][2][7]
  • 1265–70 – Ter minnen scholen gaen, to go to the school of love, in the life of Saint Lutgard.[2][6]
  • 1284 – Scole of a school building in Bruges.[2][6]
  • 1292 – Scoele houden “to keep a school” in Dordrecht.[6]
  • 16th century – Uit de school klappen “to tell tales out of school”.[9]
  • 1642 – School for a group of scholars sharing views.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A school, an institution where teaching is given: Zij zit op een school in het centrum.[8][11][1]
  2. A school building.[8][11]
  3. Lessons, school time: Na school gaan we zwemmen.[8][11]
  4. The pupils and teachers of a school together.[8][11]
  5. A group of artists or scholars who share a method or outlook: de Haagse school.[8][1]
  6. A faculty or institute within a larger one, such as a university.[1]
  7. (riding) The regular practice of all the movements.[8]

Word family

  • scholen
  • schoolmeester
  • schooljongen
  • schoolkind
  • schoolboek
  • schoolbord
  • schoolplein
  • schooljaar
  • schoolvakantie
  • schoolziek
  • basisschool
  • hogeschool
  • kleuterschool
  • kostschool
  • avondschool
  • rijschool
  • dansschool
  • leerschool
  • muziekschool
  • sportschool

school2 shoal, group

Pronunciation

Forms

school f (plural scholen, diminutive schooltje n)[1]

Etymology

The shoal is inherited from Middle Dutch schole (“group of animals; crowd, troop”), probably borrowed from Latin schola (“school”).[2][6][1] Most dictionaries take it to be the same loan as school1, through a sense “band of pupils around their master”: Late Latin already used the noun for a troop of soldiers.[2][3][12] The Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek sees no reason to assume another origin, and Van Haeringen also preferred this view.[13][14]

Franck and Van Wijk, followed by the Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal and Wiktionary, instead connect it with schaar “crowd” and derive it as a native word, Proto-West Germanic *skulu (“troop, group”), meaning “division”, from the root Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“to split, divide”) of schil.[5][15][1][2] The Philippa dictionary finds this formally possible, but De Vries thinks it less likely.[2][3] The same word, meaning “crowd”, is Old Saxon skola, Old High German scuola and Old English scolu (modern English shoal).[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Der naturen bloeme of 1287, from West Flanders: doves, geese, swans, starlings, rooks, jackdaws, finches and gulls fly bi scolen, in flocks, from land to land.[6][2][7]

Semantic evolution

At first the word was used of all kinds of animal groups, such as flocks of birds; from the 14th century it also meant a crowd of people, a band or an army, as in a rhymed text of 1300–25 where Cilla comes met sire scole, with his army.[2] From the 18th century it has been used only of fish.[2] In German and Low German, as in Dutch, it fell together with the word for the institution.[2]

English school “shoal of fish” was borrowed from Dutch, recorded from about 1400, and West Frisian skoal probably was too.[2][3][10] Danish skole “school of (whale) fish” comes from Dutch or English.[10]

Timeline

  • 1287 – Middle Dutch scolen “flocks” of birds, in Der naturen bloeme.[6][2][7]
  • 1300–25 – Scole “army, band”.[2]
  • c. 1400 – English school “shoal” is borrowed from Dutch.[3]
  • 18th century – The word is restricted to groups of fish.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A shoal, a close group of fish of the same kind swimming together: een school haringen.[8][11][16]
  2. A crowd, a group of people.[2]

Word family

  • samenscholen
  • samenscholing

Usage notes

In fishing, school also means a mesh of a net, as in an Enkhuizen rule of 1624 that all nets must be 750 meshes, masken ofte scholen, wide; the Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal gives this sense a numbered entry of its own, of unknown origin.[15][8][17]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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 y z 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 f g h i j Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
  4. ^ Vercoullie, Jozef (1925), Beknopt etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 3rd ed., 's-Gravenhage / Gent: Nijhoff / Van Rysselberghe & Rombaut
  5. ^ a b c Franck, Johannes; Wijk, Nicolaas van (1912), Franck's Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 2nd ed., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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
  7. ^ a b c d Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
  9. ^ a b Stoett, F. A. (1923–1925), Nederlandsche spreekwoorden, spreekwijzen, uitdrukkingen en gezegden, 4th ed., 3 vols., Zutphen: Thieme
  10. ^ a b c d Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
  11. ^ a b c d e Algemeen Nederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; anw.ivdnt.org
  12. ^ Vries, Jan de; Tollenaere, Félicien de (2004), Etymologisch woordenboek: onze woorden, hun oorsprong en ontwikkeling, 23rd ed., Utrecht: Het Spectrum, p. 332
  13. ^ Verwijs, Eelco; Verdam, Jacob (1885–1929), Middelnederlandsch woordenboek, 11 vols., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff; gtb.ivdnt.org
  14. ^ Haeringen, C. B. van (1936), Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal: Supplement, 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
  15. ^ a b 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
  16. ^ WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org
  17. ^ Debrabandere, Frans (2002), West-Vlaams etymologisch woordenboek: de herkomst van de West-Vlaamse woorden, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Atlas