willen

Forms

willen^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch willen, inherited from Old Dutch willen, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *willjan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *wiljaną (“to want”).^[2][1] The same verb is Old Saxon willian, Old High German wellen (modern German wollen), Old Frisian willa, Old English willan (modern English will), Old Norse vilja and Gothic 𐍅𐌹𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 (wiljan), all originally with the sense of wanting and wishing.^[2][3][4]

The Germanic present had the form of an optative, as the Gothic present forms still show, and Kroonen traces it to an optative paradigm of the parent language.^[3][5][4] The past tense, originally with /i/, was in most languages remade after the preterite-presents such as zou and kon: Old Dutch wolda gave modern wou(de), beside the analogical wilde.^[2] The modern ⟨ou⟩ comes from the regular change of ⟨ol⟩ before /d/ and /t/.^[1]

With ablaut the same root gave Proto-Germanic *waljaną (“to choose”), seen in the Old Dutch gloss uuelida (“he chose”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 (waljan), Old Norse velja and German wählen with Wahl.^[2][5] Outside Germanic the root, Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose, to want”), appears in Latin volō (“to want”), Lithuanian vélti and Old Church Slavonic волити (voliti, “to choose, to want”).^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old Dutch willon appears in the Wachtendonck Psalms of the 10th century, with a noun object: thiadi thia uuiga uuilunt “the peoples that want wars”.^[2][6] With an infinitive it is recorded about 1100 in the Leiden Willeram: wille ich iemer gehugan thero sinero micholen genathon “I will always remember his great mercies”.^[2][6] Middle Dutch willen is found in Limburg around 1200.^[7]

Semantic evolution

Thirteenth-century texts already use willen for “to demand”, “to approve”, “to threaten” and, as an auxiliary, “can” and “shall”.^[7] The adverb willens “deliberately” is recorded from 1240, and the pair willens ende wetens from 1503–1516; the participle gewild “in demand” follows in 1635.^[2]

The third person hij wilt, formed after other verbs, was fairly common in the 16th and early 17th centuries and is still heard in Flanders and Dutch Limburg; some Flemish dialects shorten the past tense to wā.^[8] In modern Dutch the verb also expresses polite requests and, as an auxiliary, what tends to happen.^[9] The Dutch Wiktionary also records a sense “to go round”, said of a rumour or story.^[10]

The word lives on in Afrikaans wil, in Negerhollands wil, wel “to wish, to love”, Skepi Dutch wel, and in a Javanese dialect as wil “to want”.^[11][1]

Timeline

• 901–1000 – Old Dutch willon is recorded in the Wachtendonck Psalms.^[12][2]
• c. 1100 – The Leiden Willeram uses it with an infinitive.^[2]
• c. 1200 – Middle Dutch willen is recorded in Limburg.^[7]
• 1240 – The adverb willens is recorded.^[2]
• 1503–1516 – Willens ende wetens “knowingly and deliberately” is recorded.^[2]
• 1635 – The participle gewild “in demand” is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive) To want, wish for: Ik wil een nieuwe fiets.^[9][1]
2. (modal) To want to, be willing to: Zij wil volgend jaar in Utrecht studeren.^[9][1]
3. To want to go somewhere: De kinderen willen naar huis.^[1]
4. To work, to succeed: De auto wilde vanochtend niet starten.^[9][10]
5. Used for a polite request: Wil je het raam even dichtdoen?^[9][10]
6. (auxiliary) Expresses what may or tends to happen: Zo'n griep wil weleens lang duren.^[9]
7. (past tense or conditional) Would like: Ik zou graag een kamer willen reserveren.^[1]

Word family

• wil
• gewild
• willens

Related words

• English will
• German wollen

Usage notes

Beside wilde the past tense wou (plural wouden) is common; it continues the old ablaut form.^[8][2]

References

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