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E 0669 PAUCITY ,
POCO
The word " paucity " is, via Old French, of Latin origin .
The word " poco " is , via Italian, of Latin origin .
H 0687 ת
ח
פ
Concept of root : reducing
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Hebrew word
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pronunciation
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English meanings
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ת ח פ
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paghat, pighèt
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to
reduce, diminish
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Related English words
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paucity
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Comparison between European words and
Hebrew
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Languages
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Words
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Pronunciation
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English meanings
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Similarity in roots
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Hebrew
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ת ח פ
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paghat, pighèt
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to reduce, diminish
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p . gh . t
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Latin
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paucus ;
paucitas
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paucus
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few ;
paucity
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p . c .
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English
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paucity
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paucity
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p . c
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Proto-Semitic *PAGHAT --- *PAUK Indo-European
The similarity is present between the Latin root and the first two consonants of Hebrew "paghat". Apparently the Hebrew root has been extended by adding a T. Hebrew historically has a strong tendency to establish roots with three consonants. Adding a T is one of these , and it may be used to diversify a meaning. In this case we see no evidence of a root with two consonants that carries either the same or a preparatory meaning.
The concepts are not identical, but near, between reducing and being few. We have here not a strong example , but a reasonable possibility of a common origin.
Note:
- Hebrew and Proto-Semitic. A Hebrew root " פ ח ת , P GH T". as in this entry is also seen with the meaning of " to dig, hollow" and there is a noun "paghat" that says "pit". The Proto-Semitic root is seen as being the same, but it is improbable that this root is the same we find in our entry. It is just identical in sound but carries a totally different group of messages. Syriac "peghèt = he dug, burrowed" sounds similar to Hebrew, but Akkadian "pataghu = to bore" is rather distant, and Arabic "faghata = he cut off " even more so.
Consequently we have only Hebrew for the meaning of "diminish, reduce, lessen". It may yet have existed in a Proto-Semitic "* פ ח ת , P GH T".
Note:
- Indo-European and Proto-Germanic. The English word "few is seen as related to Latin "paucus". It is considered to have come from a Proto-Germanic "*P AU-". In Old Norse there is "far". There is also Greek "παυρος, pauros = little". Here we do not see a second consonant "C" as in Latin "paucus", but Latin itself has a related "paul(l)us = small, little, not much". This word is seen as having a predecessor "*paurus". Then Armenian gives "p'okr = small".
The resulting picture is a unit "*PAW", lengthened either by " R , L (that may interchange, as seen in Latin)" or by " C = K ", without full clarity about a differentiation between these forms in the general field of "small, little, few". Possible "*P AU K-" stood for "not much, not many" and "*P AU R-, *P AU L-for "small, little" . But in practice such distinctions may sometimes become vague, also through the figurative use of the concepts.
In our comparison we mention the form "*P AU K-".
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| Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 16/11/2012 at 10.50.14 |
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