Proto-Germanic *daw-ja-, the ultimate source of English to die, is here argued to have originally been a polysemous verb meaning ‘to run; to die’, corroborating its current etymological analysis as a reflex of the Proto-Indo-European root *dheu̯- ‘to run’. The proposal is supported by both well-known and previously unnoticed reflexes of the verb *daw-ja-in Gothic, Old Icelandic, and Old English, as well as by further Germanic lexical items and figurative expressions. Further support is provided by a series of semantic parallels in several Indo-European traditions, which, together with the Germanic material, reflect a well-known conceptual metaphor rooted in universal human cognition.
Ginevra, R., To die is ‘to run (away)’. The semantics of Proto-Germanic *daw-ja- ‘to run; to die’ from a historical and comparative perspective, <<NOWELE>>, 2024; 77 (2): 87-109. [doi:10.1075/nowele.00086.gin] [https://hdl.handle.net/10807/299998]
To die is ‘to run (away)’. The semantics of Proto-Germanic *daw-ja- ‘to run; to die’ from a historical and comparative perspective
Ginevra, Riccardo
2024
Abstract
Proto-Germanic *daw-ja-, the ultimate source of English to die, is here argued to have originally been a polysemous verb meaning ‘to run; to die’, corroborating its current etymological analysis as a reflex of the Proto-Indo-European root *dheu̯- ‘to run’. The proposal is supported by both well-known and previously unnoticed reflexes of the verb *daw-ja-in Gothic, Old Icelandic, and Old English, as well as by further Germanic lexical items and figurative expressions. Further support is provided by a series of semantic parallels in several Indo-European traditions, which, together with the Germanic material, reflect a well-known conceptual metaphor rooted in universal human cognition.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.