Brief German · revision 36149

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=9th century, Old High German glosses|origins=la brevis}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈbʁiːf/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''Brief''' ''m'' (genitive Briefes or Briefs, plural Briefe, diminutive Briefchen n or Brieflein n or Brieferl n)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|gmh|brief]], [[inh|goh|briaf]], an early [[bor|la|breve|t=short writing, document]], the neuter of the adjective [[m|la|brevis|t=short]].^(Kluge 2011|151)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020)^(Wiktionary) Pfeifer gives the source as the adjective (understood with [[m|la|libellus|t=little book]]) or the Late Latin noun “short writing, deed”, recorded from the 6th century,^(Pfeifer 1993) and Duden 7 starts from a Vulgar Latin phrase meaning “short writing”.^(Duden 7 2020) The same loan is [[osx|brēf]], [[ofs|brēf]], [[non|bréf]], [[dum|brief]] and [[gml|brēf]].^(Kluge 2011|151)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(EWA|2, 332)

+

+ The borrowing is early: the Latin /e/ had already been lengthened, so that it could become the Old High German diphthong ⟨ia⟩, and the ⟨f⟩ reflects a Latin /v/ already pronounced as a fricative.^(Kluge 2011|151)^(Pfeifer 1993) Old Norse, Old Saxon and Middle Low German keep the long /ē/, and the Scandinavian languages also keep the Latin neuter gender.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+

+ Old English had only the derived verb [[m|ang|gebrēfan|t=to write down briefly, sum up]], and Middle English [[m|enm|bref]] was taken from [[fro|brief]] and used only as a legal term.^(EWA|2, 332) For “letter” the Bible of Wulfila uses [[got|𐌰𐌹𐍀𐌹𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌿𐌻𐌴|tr=aipistaule]], taken from [[grc|ἐπιστολή|tr=epistolḗ]].^(EWA|2, 332) A second borrowing of the Latin noun in the 15th century gave [[Breve]], a papal letter.^(EWA|2, 332)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old High German ''briaf'' is recorded from the 9th century in glosses, in Otfrid's Gospel book, in the Sankt Gallen Benedictine Rule and in Notker.^(Köbler AHD)^(Schützeichel 2012|60)^(Kluge 2011|151) Its senses were “writing, document, deed”, also “list” and “decree”, and the glosses translate Latin ''epistola'', ''libellus'', ''carta'' and ''breve'' with it;^(EWA|2, 332)^(Schützeichel 2012|60)^(AWB) ''in briaf gineman'' meant “to write down”.^(EWA|2, 332)^(Schützeichel 2012|60)^(AWB) In Middle High German, from the Kaiserchronik (about 1150) on, ''brief'' is a letter, a deed or any piece of writing.^(Köbler MHD)^(Lexer 1872|1, 352)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ For a long time the word belonged chiefly to the language of the chancery, meaning an official writing or a deed.^(Duden 7 2020)^(Paul 2002) That sense survives in ''Brief und Siegel'' (14th century) and in compounds such as [[Freibrief]] “privilege” (14th century), [[Schuldbrief]] “bond” (15th century) and [[Steckbrief]] “description of a wanted person” (16th century), and in the verb [[verbriefen]] “to confirm by deed”.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Kluge 2011|151)^(Duden 7 2020) The modern sense “letter sent to someone” was carried at first by [[Sendbrief]], recorded from the 12th century, which was shortened to ''Brief'' in Middle High German times.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Kluge 2011|151)^(Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch)

+

+ Several compounds changed sense with the word: ''offener Brief'' was a public deed or proclamation in the 13th century and a letter printed in a newspaper from the 19th century; the [[Briefkasten]] was a chest for deeds in the 15th century and the post box from 1824; the [[Briefträger]] was a court messenger in the 14th century and the postman from the 18th.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002) Adelung recorded the merchants' use of ''Brief'' for a bill of exchange, and the stock exchange still uses it for the asking price.^(Adelung 1793)^(Duden GWDS 1999) The diminutive [[Briefchen]] also named a folded paper holding pins, needles or tobacco, as in a quotation of 1690.^(DWB2|5, 800)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 6th century – Late Latin ''breve'' “short writing, deed” is recorded.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 9th century – Old High German ''briaf'' appears in glosses and in Otfrid.^(Köbler AHD)^(Kluge 2011|151)

+ * c. 1150 – Middle High German ''brief'' in the Kaiserchronik.^(Köbler MHD)

+ * 12th century – ''Sendbrief'' carries the sense “letter sent to someone”.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 13th century – ''Offener Brief'' means a public deed or proclamation.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002)

+ * 14th century – First record of the formula ''Brief und Siegel''.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002)

+ * 15th century – ''Breve'' is borrowed anew for a papal letter.^(EWA|2, 332)

+ * 1644 – Harsdörffer proposes ''Briefwechsel'' as a German word for ''Korrespondenz''.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 1824 – ''Briefkasten'' is first used for the post box.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * Mid-19th century – ''Briefmarke'' “postage stamp” appears.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[m|en|letter]]: a written message sent in an [[m|en|envelope]] by post or messenger.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)^(Wiktionary DE)

+ # ''(stock exchange)'' Short for [[Briefkurs]]: the [[m|en|asking price]] of a security.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # ''(dated)'' A [[m|en|deed]] or official document.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(FWB)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[verbriefen]]

+ * [[brieflich]]

+ * [[Briefkasten]]

+ * [[Briefträger]]

+ * [[Briefmarke]]

+ * [[Briefwechsel]]

+ * [[Sendbrief]]

+ * [[Freibrief]]

+ * [[Steckbrief]]

+ * [[Schuldbrief]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[Breve]]

+ * [[Brevier]]

+ * [[Brimborium]]

+ * [[en|brief]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Ein blauer Brief'' (colloquial) is a letter of dismissal, or a school's warning to parents that their child may have to repeat a year; the name comes from the blue envelope in which officers were told of their discharge from 1870 on.^(Duden GWDS 1999) ''Jemandem Brief und Siegel geben'' is to give someone a firm assurance: a deed in the old legal sense became valid only with its seal.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Duden 7 2020) An ''offener Brief'' is an open letter published in the press.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}