kennen German · revision 35181

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=9th century, Old High German; bikennen 8th century|origins=ine-pro *ǵneh₃-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * Germany: /ˈkɛnən/^(Wiktionary)

+ * Austria, Southern-Germany, Switzerland: /ˈkɛnɛn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''kennen''' (irregular weak, third-person singular present kennt, past tense kannte, past participle gekannt, past subjunctive kennte, auxiliary haben)^(Wiktionary)

+ The past tense and participle ''kannte'', ''gekannt'' have the vowel change of ''brennen''; older and dialect German also has forms levelled to the present, ''kennte'', ''gekennt'' or ''kennete'', ''gekennet''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|gmh|kennen]], [[inh|goh|kennen]], [[inh|gmw-pro|*kannijan]], [[inh|gem-pro|*kannijaną|t=to make known]].^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Wiktionary) The same verb is [[got|𐌺𐌰𐌽𐌽𐌾𐌰𐌽|tr=kannjan|t=to make known]], [[non|kenna|t=to make known, perceive, enjoy]], [[ang|cennan|t=to declare, explain]], [[ofs|kenna]], [[osx|antkennian|t=to recognise]] and [[odt|kennan]];^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Kroonen 2013) Kluge also lists [[nl|kennen]], [[sv|känna]] and [[is|kenna]].^(Kluge 2011|486) Its cognate [[en|ken]] survives in Scots and English.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ It is a causative in /-jan-/ formed from the singular present of the preterite-present verb that became [[können]], [[gem-pro|*kunnaną|t=to know, be able]], so that it first meant “to make known, cause to understand”.^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|430)^(Kroonen 2013) The causative took the vowel of the singular present, /a/, umlauted to /e/ by the following /j/.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Wiktionary) Behind the preterite-present verb lies [[ine-pro|*ǵneh₃-|t=to know]], the root of [[la|nōscō|t=to get to know]], [[grc|γιγνώσκω|tr=gignṓskō]] and [[lt|žinoti|alt=žinóti|t=to know]].^(Orel 2003)^(Wiktionary) Kluge notes that in continental Germanic the meanings of the base and of the causative grew alike and only later drew apart again.^(Kluge 2011|486)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The simple verb is hardly recorded in Old High German: the 8th-century texts have the prefixed ''bikennen'' and ''irkennen'', and ''kennen'' itself is dated to the 9th century.^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993) The Grimms found only one trace of the simple verb in the glosses, ''unchennento'' “not recognising”, and in Old Saxon the ''Heliand'' has only ''antkennian''.^(DWB|11, 532) In Middle High German ''erkennen'' and ''bekennen'' still prevailed, but ''kennen'' “to know, recognise” occurs from Eilhart's ''Tristrant'' (1170–1190) on.^(DWB|11, 532)^(Köbler MHD)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In Early New High German ''kennen'' came close to ''erkennen'' “recognise”, as in Luther's ''da er ihn kennete'' “when he recognised him”, and the sense “to tell apart” is still found in Goethe; both are now obsolete.^(Paul 2002)^(FWB) Goethe also often used it for “to get to know”, and Swedish ''lära känna'', Dutch ''leeren kennen'' and Danish ''lære at kende'' are modelled on German ''kennenlernen''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ''Kenner'' is recorded in the 16th century and has meant “connoisseur, expert” since the 18th, with ''kennerisch'' and ''Kennerblick'' in the 18th century;^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|430)^(Paul 2002) a 14th-century Central German ''kenner'' meant “begetter, one who recognises”.^(Duden 7 2020|430) ''Kenntnis'' was formed in Middle High German from the participle, ''kenntlich'' appears in the 14th century beside the older ''kennelich'', ''verkennen'' “to misjudge” in the 17th, ''Kennzeichen'' in the 16th and ''Kennwort'' in the 20th.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|430)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 8th century – The prefixed ''bikennen'' and ''irkennen'' are recorded.^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 9th century – Old High German ''kennen''.^(Kluge 2011|486)^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 1170–1190 – Middle High German ''kennen'' in Eilhart's ''Tristrant''.^(Köbler MHD)

+ * 14th century – ''kenntlich'' appears beside the older ''kennelich''.^(Duden 7 2020|430)^(Paul 2002)

+ * 16th century – ''Kenner'' and ''Kennzeichen''.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 17th century – ''verkennen'' “to misjudge”.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|430)

+ * 18th century – ''Kenner'' comes to mean “expert”;^(Paul 2002)^(Pfeifer 1993) ''Kennerblick''.^(Paul 2002)^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 20th century – ''Kennwort'' “password, code word”.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To [[m|en|know]], be [[m|en|familiar]] with someone or something from experience: ''Ich kenne diese Gegend seit meiner Kindheit.''^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To know someone as a person with particular qualities: ''So kenne ich ihn gar nicht.''^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # To be [[m|en|acquainted]] with someone: ''Wir kennen uns vom Studium.''^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary DE)

+ # To understand or have command of something: ''Sie kennt ihr Handwerk.''^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # To [[m|en|recognise]], be able to identify again.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # To be able to name or state: ''Kennst du den Namen dieser Blume?''^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # To be aware of something, and (usually negated) to let one's actions be governed by it: ''kein Mitleid kennen'', to show no pity.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[Kenner]]

+ * [[Kenntnis]]

+ * [[kenntlich]]

+ * [[bekennen]]

+ * [[erkennen]]

+ * [[anerkennen]]

+ * [[verkennen]]

+ * [[auskennen]]

+ * [[Kennzeichen]]

+ * [[kennzeichnen]]

+ * [[Kennwort]]

+ * [[Kennung]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[können]]

+ * [[en|ken]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Sich vor Wut nicht mehr kennen'' means to be beside oneself with rage.^(Duden GWDS 1999) Paul quotes Goethe's ''Kennst du mich für das?'' (''Götz'') for the older construction with ''für'' instead of ''als''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}