aflu

Forms

aflu (third-person singular aflã, participle aflatã)^[1]

• Class I verb, also reflexive (mi aflu): aorist aflai, imperfect aflam, participle aflatã, infinitive aflari or aflare.^[2][3]
• Other spellings: AFLU in Papahagi's dictionary;^[4] aflâri (the infinitive) in Dalametra;^[5] άφλου in the Greek script of Nikolaidis;^[6] aflu in its editor's reading of Kavalliotis's word list.^[7]
• Regional forms: áflu in the dialect of Metsovo.^[8]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin afflō (“to blow on”),^[4][9][1][3] from ad- (“to”) and flō (“to blow”).^[10] De Vaan derives the simple verb, with a question mark, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₁- (“to blow”).^[11]

The sense "to find" is shared by Romanian afla, Megleno-Romanian aflu and Istro-Romanian oflu,^[12][13][14] and by western descendants such as Spanish hallar, Portuguese achar and Neapolitan ašare;^[15] Ciorănescu concludes that the shift is older than Romanian.^[12][15] How "blow on" became "find" is debated: Pascu and Candrea–Densusianu follow Schuchardt's path through the passive "to be blown towards, be inspired";^[9][16] REW weighs farming, where hot winds and diseases "seize" plants and animals, against hunting, where the dog scents and tracks its game;^[15] Ciorănescu says most modern scholars prefer the hunting explanation.^[12]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Kavalliotis's word list of 1770, where it translates the Greek verb for "to find"; its editor reads it aflu.^[7]

Semantic evolution

Papahagi lists six senses: "to find, discover", "to learn", "to meet", "to agree", "to be born" (reflexive) and, in curses, "may it find him".^[4] Dalametra adds "to invent" and the reflexive "to be, feel" (mi aflu ghini).^[5] The expression u aflu cu cali, "to find it right", is common to Papahagi and Cunia.^[4][2]

Timeline

• 1770 – aflu “I find” in Kavalliotis's word list.^[7]
• 1813 – in Boiagi's grammar, as cited by Pascu.^[9]
• 1905 – aflu “to find” in Pericle Papahagi's glossary of tales.^[17]
• 1906 – aflâri “to find, learn, invent” in Dalametra's dictionary.^[5]

Meanings

Verb

1. To find, come upon, discover.^[2][4]
2. To learn, hear of.^[2][4]
3. (reflexive) To meet; to be found.^[2][4]
4. To agree, come to terms.^[4]
5. (reflexive) To be born.^[2][4][5]
6. To invent.^[5]

Related words

• aflari
• aflare
• aflat
• Romanian afla

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Cunia, Tiberius (2008), Dictsiunar a limbãljei armãneascã, Editsii Timpurarã (after T. Papahagi, Ș. Mihăileanu and I. Dalametra; online at dixionline.net), p. 23
3. ^ a b Κατσάνης, Νικόλαος; Ντίνας, Κωνσταντίνος (1990), Γραμματική της κοινής κουτσοβλαχικής, Θεσσαλονίκη: Αρχείο Κουτσοβλαχικών Μελετών, p. 136
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Papahagi, Tache (1974), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, 2nd augmented ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. 113
5. ^ a b c d e Dalametra, I. (1906), Dicționar macedo-român, București: Academia Română, p. 5
6. ^ Νικολαΐδης, Κωνσταντίνος (1909), Ετυμολογικόν λεξικόν της κουτσοβλαχικής γλώσσης, Αθήνα, p. 105
7. ^ a b c Meyer, Gustav (1895), Albanesische Studien IV: Das griechisch-südrumänisch-albanesische Wörterverzeichnis des Kavalliotis, Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien, phil.-hist. Classe 132, p. 51
8. ^ Δασούλας, Φώτης (2013), Το βλαχικό ιδίωμα του Μετσόβου, 2nd ed.
9. ^ a b c Pascu, Giorge (1925), Dictionnaire étymologique macédoroumain, 2 vols. (I: Les éléments latins et romans; II: Les éléments grecs, turcs, slaves, albanais, germaniques, magyars, néologismes, créations immédiates, obscurs), Iași: Cultura Națională, p. 1, 28
10. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
11. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
12. ^ a b c Ciorănescu, Alexandru (1958–1966), Diccionario etimológico rumano, La Laguna: Universidad de La Laguna (Romanian ed.: Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române, București: Saeculum, 2001)
13. ^ Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română, p. 8
14. ^ Pușcariu, Sextil (1905), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der rumänischen Sprache I: Lateinisches Element, Heidelberg: Carl Winter
15. ^ a b c Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
16. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București
17. ^ Papahagi, Pericle (1905), Basme aromâne și glosar, București: Academia Română, p. 511