wo German · revision 34910

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=8th century, Old High German|origins=ine-pro *kʷo-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /voː/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''wo''' (adverb and conjunction; before a preposition beginning with a vowel ''wor-'', as in ''woran'', ''worin'')^(Wiktionary)^(Duden 7 2020|937)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|gmh|wā]], [[inh|goh|hwār]], [[inh|gmw-pro|*hwār]]; late Middle High German had [[m|gmh|wō]].^(Kluge 2011|993)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Wiktionary) The same word is [[osx|hwār]], [[ang|hwǣr]] and [[ofs|hwēr]], and today [[nl|waar]] and [[en|where]]; with a short vowel, [[got|𐍈𐌰𐍂|tr=ƕar]], [[non|hvar]] and [[sv|var]].^(Kluge 2011|993)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Kroonen 2013) Kluge treats the long and short forms as ablaut variants, [[gmw-pro|*hwǣr]] beside [[gem-pro|*hwar]];^(Kluge 2011|993) Kroonen holds that the West Germanic long vowel arose by lengthening in a word of one syllable, as in the Latin word for “why”.^(Kroonen 2013)

+

+ It is a locative formed with the suffix /r/ from the interrogative stem [[ine-pro|*kʷo-]], which is also in [[wer]].^(Kluge 2011|993)^(Kroonen 2013) Pfeifer compares [[la|cūr|t=why]] (Old Latin [[m|la|quōr]]) and [[lt|kur|alt=kur̃|t=where]], as formations with /r/ on different grades of the same stem.^(Pfeifer 1993) The Grimms' dictionary assigns the Lithuanian word to a separate stem with /u/.^(DWB|30, 903)

+

+ Final /r/ was lost in particles of one syllable from the 11th century, and /ā/ became /ō/ after /w/ from the second half of the 13th century; the change prevailed in the 16th century.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002) The old /r/ remains in compounds before a vowel, as in [[woran]] and [[worin]], and the old vowel in [[warum]] and [[etwa]].^(Duden 7 2020|937)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old High German ''(h)wār'' is recorded from the 8th century, meaning “where, whence”, also “somewhere” and “when”, in the Tatian, Otfrid, Notker, the ''Muspilli'' and the Kassel and Paris conversation books.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Schützeichel 2012|371)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The conjunction grew out of Old High German ''sō (h)wār sō'' “wherever” through ''sō wār'' (9th century) and Middle High German ''swō'' (1330) to ''wō'' (14th century).^(Pfeifer 1993) In late Middle High German the simple word replaced the generalizing relative ''swā''; later it came to refer to a definite place (''da, wo''), where it displaced [[da]].^(Paul 2002) Writers such as Lessing, Wieland and Schiller also used it loosely after nouns and with reference to time, as in Schiller's ''jetzt ist eine schwere Zeit, wo auch das Weib sich in den Panzer steckt''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ With the sense of place faded, ''wo'' meant “if, in case”, as in Luther's ''wo ihr nach dem Fleische lebet, so werdet ihr sterben müssen''; this is now dated except in ''wo nicht'' and ''womöglich''.^(Paul 2002)^(Duden GWDS 1999) The indefinite use “somewhere” is colloquial;^(Paul 2002)^(Adelung 1793) Middle High German used ''etewā'' for it, later replaced by [[irgendwo]].^(Paul 2002)^(Adelung 1793) In regional and nonstandard speech ''wo'' also serves as a relative pronoun for persons and things.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 8th century – Old High German ''(h)wār'' is recorded.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 9th century – ''sō wār'' is used as a conjunction.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 11th century – Final ''-r'' begins to be lost.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * Second half of the 13th century – The form ''wō'' appears.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002)

+ * 1330 – Middle High German ''swō'' is recorded.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 16th century – ''wo'' prevails over ''wa''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adverb===

+ # ''(interrogative)'' [[m|en|where]], at what place: ''wo steht das Auto?''^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(relative)'' Where, at which place: ''das Haus, wo sie aufgewachsen ist''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(relative)'' When, at which time: ''an dem Tag, wo es so stürmte''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(colloquial)'' [[m|en|somewhere]].^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(regional, nonstandard)'' Who, which, as a relative pronoun: ''die Frau, wo nebenan wohnt''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Conjunction===

+ # ''(dated)'' If: ''wo nicht'' “if not”.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # Since, given that; although: ''wo du doch schon da bist''.^(Wiktionary DE)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[woran]]

+ * [[worin]]

+ * [[worauf]]

+ * [[irgendwo]]

+ * [[anderswo]]

+ * [[nirgendwo]]

+ * [[womöglich]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[wer]]

+ * [[warum]]

+ * [[etwa]]

+ * [[en|where]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}