Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ermunaz

This Proto-Germanic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Germanic

Etymology

Traditionally reconstructed as an adjectival formation with the meaning “huge, great, exalted”, and compared with Ancient Greek ὄρνῡμῐ (órnūmĭ, “to raise, excite”),[1] however, this interpretation has been rejected by several scholars on the grounds that its posited semantics are not borne out by the meanings attested in the derived compounds.[2][3] Beeler instead proposes a nominal reconstruction with the sense “earth, world”, deriving it from Proto-Indo-European men-stem *h₁ér-mn̥ ~ *h₁r̥-mén-s (“world, earth”), from *h₁er- (“earth”) +‎ *-mn̥.[3][4]

Noun

*ermunaz m[4][3]

  1. (poetic) world, earth[3]
    Synonyms: *erþō, *midjagardaz, *weraldiz

Inflection

Declension of *ermunaz (masculine a-stem)
singular plural
nominative *ermunaz *ermunōz, *ermunōs
vocative *ermun *ermunōz, *ermunōs
accusative *ermuną *ermunanz
genitive *ermunas, *ermunis *ermunǫ̂
dative *ermunai *ermunamaz
instrumental *ermunō *ermunamiz

Alternative reconstructions

  • *erþō (“earth”)
  • *erwô[3]
    • Old Norse: jǫrvi (“sand, gravel”)

Derived terms

  • *ermunagrunduz (“the world, earth”)[3][7] (cf. OHG erdgrunt)
    • Proto-West Germanic: *ermungrundu
      • Old English: eormengrund
    • Old Norse: jǫrmungrund
  • *Ermunarīks (male personal name)[3] (cf. Gaulo-Latin Biturix)
    • Proto-West Germanic: *Ermunarīk
      • Old English: Eormenrīċ
      • Old High German: Ermanrīh
    • Old Norse: Jǫrmunrekr
    • Gothic: *Airmanareiks
      • → Latin: Ermanaricus
  • *Ermunaz (cf. *Erþō)

Descendants

  • Proto-West Germanic: *ermun
    • Old English: *eormen (see there for further descendants)
    • Old Saxon: *irmin (see there for further descendants)
    • Old High German: *irmin (see there for further descendants)
  • Old Norse: *jǫrmunr

References

  1. ^ Brückner, Aleksander (1913), “Wörter und Sachen”, in Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung (in German), volume 45, number 2, →JSTOR, pages 107–108
  2. ^ de Vries, Jan (1952), “La valeur religieuse du mot germanique Irmin”, in Les Cahiers du Sud‎[1] (in French), number 314, pages 18–27
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Beeler, Madison S. (1961), “A New Etymology: Germanic *erma/in(a)- Reconsidered”, in Schmitt, Ludwig Erich, editor, Dichtung und Deutung: Gedächtnisschrift für Hans M. Wolff, Bern; München: Francke Verlag, →OCLC, pages 9–21
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Heidermanns, Frank (1993), “ermen*- (-an*-,-un*-)”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen Primäradjektive (Studia linguistica Germanica; 33) (in German), Berlin; New York: Walter de Gruyter, →ISBN
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Dahl, Ivar (1968) [1938], Substantival Inflexion in Early Old English: Vocalic Stems‎[2], Nendeln/Liechtenstein: C. W.K. Gleerup, Lund, pages 26-27: “There appear to have existed doublets in PrGc: *ermin- (: OE irmin-) and *erman- (:OG erman-, and perhaps also: OE eormen-); see Schönfeld 77, Hellquist sub Emma.”
  6. ^ Vladimir Orel (2003), “*ermenaz ~ *ermunaz”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology‎[3], Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN
  7. ^ Vladimir Orel (2003), “*ermena-ʒrunđiz ~ *ermuna-ʒrunđan”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology‎[4], Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 85
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