GR 1124          AINÜMAI

H 0162            ן י נ ע

Concept of root : business interest

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ן י נ ע

‛inĕan

interest, occupation, business

Related English words

none

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ן י נ ע

‛inĕan

interest, business, occupation

׳i n y

Greek

αινυμαι

ainumai

to occupy,

impossess, avail of, gain

ai . n

 

 

Pproto-Semitic *‛INI-AN --- *AINU-MAI Greek

 

 

The from the point of view of similarity rather audacious comparison between of these words shows that both languages have an initial vowel that can be considered "reinforced". In Greek this is done by adding an I after the A. This combination soon became pronounced as " É ", just as is the case in for example French or in Northern Italian dialects (that their speakers proudly call languages).

 

Hebrew often reinforces or emphasizes the pronunciation by placing an Ayin in front of a root, or if the root already begins with a vowel, by substituting an Ayin for the existing Aleph.

 

 

Note:
  • Hebrew. The final N of "‛inean" is a suffix for the forming of a substantive. The word itself has as its pincipal meanings that of "business" in all senses, from that of simply being occupied with work ( occupation) to a business interest or task. It may well have been developed on the basis of the root ע נ ה , that has cognates in the sense of "hard work, being busy" in Syriac "‛inn'à" (really an intensive form of the verb), Arabic "‛anà" and "‛aniyà = to be concerned" . Both basic concepts, that of "working" and of "concern" are found here. In fact, this same root is also, but with further developed accentuated meanings, like "hard work, toil, slavery, humiliation" found in some entries to which this one probably is related : GR 1123 (Hebrew 0156), E 0040 (Hebrew 0157), with rather different meanings, but more especially E 0632 (Hebrew 0158).

 

Note:
  • Greek and Hebrew. The "Y" of the Hebrew root is just a cousin, fruit of a slightly diverging development with respect to the Greek " Ü ". Both originate from an original W or U-sound. And the initial diphtongh "AI" in Greek not seldom corresponds with Hebrew "Ayin A".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic. This Hebrew word has cognates in Aramaic "ע נ י נ א, ‛inyan'à" and Syriac "ע נ י נ א, ‛enyan'à" , both meaning "business, occupation, affair". Its basis probably was used in Proto-Semitic : "*ע נ י נ Ayin, N Y N." .

 

 

 

 
"...the town, to which was given the name Babel, because it was there that the Lord confused the language of all the world on the face of which He dispersed them. GENESIS 11,9"
 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 01/10/2012 at 18.07.27