E 1026          YMBE

The Old English word " ymbe " is of Germanic origin .

H 0147            ה מ ע

Concept of root : nearness

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ה מ ע

‛ummą

near to, aside

Related English words

Old English ymbe

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ה מ ע

‛ummą

near to, aside

‛u m

Greek

αμφι ;

amphi

around, near

a mph

Latin

am-, amb-

amb-

around, about

a m ;

a mb

Old English

ymbe

about, around

y mb

Old High German

umbi

umbi

about, around

u mb

Old Norse

um, umb

um, umb

about, around

u m

u mb

Middle-Dutch

om omme, ombe

om omme, ombe

near to, aside, about, around

 o m ;

o mb

 

 

Proto-Semitic *‛UMMA --- *UMB- Indo-European

 

 

This entry, clearly related to numbers E 0455 (Hebrew 0142), E 0456 (Hebrew 0143) and E 1025 (Hebrew 0144), is a further one in a series of brief roots that have as their basic element a consonant M that carries the messages of common origin and togetherness. Here is "nearness, joining, connection" part of the issue, and both Germanic and Hebrew have used a vowel of the W-group to express this. In Hebrew U, in Dutch O, in German again U. Only Greek and Middle Dutch seems to have maintained also the original message of nearness, identical with Hebrew.

 

Note:
  • Hebrew Some think that this Hebrew word has been derived from a root " Ayin M M ", that would also be the basis of other important words, such as " 'am = people, kinsman" and " ' im = with ". This cannot be. The root "Ayin M M " has certainly been created by the doubling of the second consonant, that is the first of the two "M"'s and is based on a root " ע ם, "Ayin M". And this brief root is indeed found in the mentioned words " 'am = people, kinsman" and " ' im = with ". Our word " 'ummą " ( identical to the well-known Arab word for " people, nation " ) with the meaning it has, is a probable extension of a predecessor "* 'om " of the word " ' im = with ".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic supposedly had the same root " * ע ם", that is the basic element of the word of this entry. It is found in Hebrew and many other Semitic tongues, as Phoenician, Moabitic, Aramaic, Syriac, Ugaritic, Arabic and OS Arabic.

     

    But then there is also Arabic "amam= near". Here the meaning is the same as for Hebrew "‛umma", but the two languages have chosen different roads. Arabic has doubled the syllable "am", but without an initial Ayin. Hebrew has maintained the Ayin, doubled the consonant "M" and added a final vowel "A". It is quite possible that the " M " was doubled already in Proto-Semitic. A hpothesis simuilar to Hebrew seems reasonable, though certainty is not there.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic Germanic languages developed the use of this root principally into " around, about ", though also other meanings can be recognized in various expressions. Perhaps this change has been expressed by adding a B, as seen in Old English, Old High German and partially in Middle Dutch, that has also the same meanings as Hebrew . A form "*U MB-" seems an acceptable hypothesis for Proto-Germanic.

 

Note:
  • Latin uses "am-" and "amb-" as prefixes: Both mean "around-, about-" though the first one has not the added consonant B. There is also the prefix "ambi-", that says "both-" .

 

Note:
  • Greek instead of adding a B has chosen a P. Both are ways to pronounce with more emphasis.
    This can be used or not in order to diversify a meaning.

 

Note:
  • Indo-European. The combination "MB-" is found in Albanian mbi, mbe =+

     

    Old Indian "abhí-tah = on both sides" .

     

    Avestan "aiwito = on boh sides".

     

    Celtic has Old Irish "imb-, imm-, imme- = around" with cognates in other languages.

     

    Albanian mbi, mbe = near, on".

     

    Indo-European, considering this information and the above table, allows a hypothesis similar to Proto-Germanic: "*U MB-", possibly besides a form "Ĕ MB-". The vowels " I " and " Y " in some tongues may have developed out of an earlier "U" or "O".

 

 

 

 

 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 01/10/2012 at 14.08.13