GD 1047 GIER

H 0441           א ר ח

Concept of root : excrements

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

א ר ח

ghar'à

dung, excrements

Related English words

none

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

א ר ח

ghar'à

dung, excrements

gh . r .

Dutch

gier

ghir

excrements (liquid)

g . r

 

 

Proto-Semitic *GHŪR --- *GĪR Proto-Germanic

 

 

This is one of those amazing similarities between Hebrew and Dutch, that finds company in other Germanic languages,like Old Frisian "jier, jerre". Old English had "gyr", used for various kinds of "filth" and "manure", including even "mud". It does not have any reasonable explanation for the etymolog of this word.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic. Proto-Semitic has a hypothesis of "* א ר י , Aleph R Y ", mainly influenced by Akkadian "araru = to rot, defecate, discharge a putrid liquid". Akkadian begins with a vowel, but Aramaic, Hebrew and most other Semitic languages have an initial guttural GH, sometimes H, in words lacking the meaning of "to urinate" or "urine". They express the concept of "excrement".

     

    This kind of difference between Akkadian and most other languages is a frequent one. It does not at all imply that Proto-Semitic must have been like Akkadian.

     

    Arabic has "ghūr" for "dung, excrement". Proto-Semitic should have known a root "*ח ר , GH R " for "excrement". The used vowel may have been an " A ", but also an " Ū ".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic. On the basis of Old English, Old Frisian and (Middle) Dutch a hypothesis of a Proto-Germanic "*G Ī R-" is possible.

 

Note:
  • Indo-European. There seems to be no information about possible cognates in other European languages and the comparison remains as often between Semitic and Germanic.

 

 

 

 

 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 27/10/2012 at 13.48.56