vragen

Forms

vragen (past tense vroeg, less often vraagde; past participle gevraagd)^[2][3] Vriech for “asked” is found in Coster in 1618 and is still heard in some dialects.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch vrâghen, inherited from Old Dutch frāgon, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *frāgēn, inherited from Proto-Germanic *frēgōn- (“to ask”).^[3][1] The same verb is Old Saxon frāgon, Old High German frāgēn (modern German fragen) and Old Frisian frēgia (modern West Frisian freegje).^[3][4][5] Beside it stood the noun ⟨*frēgō-⟩, Middle Dutch vraghe, the word vraag;^[3][6] Kroonen thinks the verb was formed from that noun.^[3][6]

The lengthened vowel alternates by ablaut with ⟨*freg-⟩, the root of a strong verb with a nasal infix, Proto-Germanic *fregnan- (“to ask, inquire”), which gave fregnan, Old English frignan, Old Norse fregna and Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌷𐌽𐌰𐌽 (fraihnan), and of ⟨*fergōn-⟩, the verb vergen.^[3][4] The source is the root noun Proto-Indo-European *preḱ- (“question”), also found in Latin prex (“prayer, request”) with precor (“to pray, entreat”), Avestan fərasā- (“question”), Welsh rheg (“gift; curse”) and Lithuanian prašýti (“to ask for”).^[3][6][7] Vorsen “to investigate” comes from a present stem of the same root.^[3]

The verb was originally weak, as it still is in German and in the participle gevraagd.^[3][8] The strong past ⟨vroeg⟩ arose in Early Modern Dutch, by the WNT's evidence in the 17th century, after strong verbs such as dragen, as also happened to jagen.^[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old Dutch fragon is first recorded around 1100 in the Leiden Willeram: Ir fragadot mich, war min drut wara “you asked me where my beloved was”.^[3][8][9] In Middle Dutch the women in Floyris (1201–1225) urageten wat er were, asked what was the matter, and in 1285 a king vraghede omme raet, asked for advice.^[3][10]

Semantic evolution

Middle Dutch already used the verb both for asking a question and for asking for something.^[3][10][11] Vragen om in the sense “to want, to call for” is not recorded in Middle Dutch, though Kiliaan glosses the verb with Latin petere.^[11] Sonder vraghen meant “without asking leave” and also “at once”.^[10][11] Modern senses include inviting someone, asking a price, and requiring or needing something; in card games vragen is to bid.^[12][1]

The oldest WNT quotation of vroeg is from Bredero (1611). Huydecoper rejected it in 1730 and replaced it with vraagde in his own work, but vroeg won, and after 1791 vraagde is hardly recorded outside Multatuli's first edition of Max Havelaar (1860).^[2] The verb went to Swedish fråga “to request” (from Dutch or Low German), to Javindo, Negerhollands, Berbice Dutch fragi and Skepi Dutch, and Afrikaans has vra.^[13][1]

Timeline

• c. 1100 – Old Dutch fragon in the Leiden Willeram.^[3][9]
• 1201–1225 – Middle Dutch urageten “asked” in Floyris.^[3][10]
• c. 1240 – Uragen glosses Latin interrogare in Limburg.^[10][5]
• 1285 – Vraghede omme raet “asked for advice”.^[3][10]
• 1611 – The strong past vroeg in Bredero.^[2]
• 1730 – Huydecoper condemns vroeg.^[2]
• 1860 – Vraagde in Multatuli's Max Havelaar, changed to vroeg in 1881.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. To ask someone a question: Ik vroeg haar hoe laat de trein vertrok.^[12][1][14]
2. To request, to ask for something: Hij vroeg om een glas water.^[12][14]
3. To invite: Ze hebben ons gevraagd voor hun bruiloft.^[12]
4. To ask a price; to demand: Hoeveel vraagt hij voor die fiets?^[12][1]
5. To need, to require: Dit werk vraagt veel geduld.^[12][1]
6. To seek to obtain, as in advertisements: Kok gevraagd.^[12]
7. (card games, intransitive) To bid.^[12]

Word family

• aanvragen
• afvragen
• bevragen
• navragen
• ondervragen
• opvragen
• overvragen
• uitvragen
• rondvragen
• ongevraagd
• vrager

Related words

• vraag
• vergen
• vorsen
• German fragen

Usage notes

The saying vragen staat vrij “there is no harm in asking” is the first half of het vragen staat vrij, maar 't weigeren er bij, “asking is free, but so is refusing”; the first half is found in the 16th century and the whole in Vondel.^[15]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 c d e f g h i j k l m n o p 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
4. ^ a b Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
5. ^ a b Vries, Jan de; Tollenaere, Félicien de (2004), Etymologisch woordenboek: onze woorden, hun oorsprong en ontwikkeling, 23rd ed., Utrecht: Het Spectrum, p. 420
6. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
7. ^ Veen, P. A. F. van; Sijs, Nicoline van der (1997), Etymologisch woordenboek: de herkomst van onze woorden, 2nd ed., Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Lexicografie
8. ^ a b Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org
9. ^ a b Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
10. ^ a b c d e f 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 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 Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
13. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
14. ^ a b WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org
15. ^ Stoett, F. A. (1923–1925), Nederlandsche spreekwoorden, spreekwijzen, uitdrukkingen en gezegden, 4th ed., 3 vols., Zutphen: Thieme