GD 1120          ZWICHTEN

H 0870            ג ו ס נ

H 0870            ג ( ו ) ס

H 0870            ג ( ו ) ש

H 0870            ג י ש

Concept of root : withdrawing

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ג ו ס נ;

ג ו ס

ג ו ש ;

ג י ש

nasog;

sog;

-

sig

to withdraw, move away, retreat;

-

withdrawal, evacuation

Related English words

none

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ג ו ס נ;

ג ו ס

ג ו ש ;

ג י ש

-

nasog

sog;

-

sig

-

to retreat, withdraw, move back;

withdrawal, evacuation

s . w . g

Dutch

zwichten

zwighten

to give in, withdraw

z w (i) g (t)

Middle Dutch

swichten, swechten

swighten, sweghten

to (make) give in, withdraw

s w . gh (t)

 

 

Hebrew SUG --- ZWICH-T-EN Dutch

 

 

This Hebrew verb is old, and shows what is also seen as a so-called passive form, but that for modern Europeans has an active meaning. One mayd consider the case in which some party forces another to withdraw. This forcing to withdraw was expressed by a verb with the root " S W G", pronounced "SOG" or "SUG". The party that is forced to withdraw undergoes this forcing and this can be seen as a passive effect of the function of the basic verb.

 

Another possibility is that the "N" in "N S G" or in "nasog" is a prefix that does not change the meaning. This is in harmony with the existence of the other verbs of this entry.

 

There are more examples of comparable developments as to verbal forms with an initial N. Hebrew has a verb " כ נ ס " that in its basic form "kanas" says "to collect" and in its intensive form " kinnès" stands for "to assemble (people)". Those who are assembled and come in the venue where the assembly is held, have undergone the action of convocation, are made to join, and thus their action is "to enter", expressed in the passive form of the transitive verb "to assemble", that is " נ כ נ ס, nikhnas = to enter ".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic. We lack evidence on which to base a hypothesis for Proto-Semitic. Arabic "saja = to come and go" is too far off.

 

Note:
  • Dutch in fact has two identical verbs "zwichten", with quite different meanings. One is a causative for the verb "zwijgen" that says "to be silent, not speaking". Thus "zwichten" says "to silence, make silent".

     

    The other, from this entry, in Middle Dutch had transitive as well as intransitive meaning, that is "to make give in, make calm down, restrain" as well as "to give in, withdraw, stop". With all probability the version with E, "swechten" in still older language was the original causative and after that things have been mixed up some. We see a small confirmation of this in a verb "swigen" that says "to faint". Anyhow the use of one verb in both transitive and intransitive sense, and as well in both active and passive sense, was common in older Dutch.

     

    The additional T is not part of the original root, but has been added later, either to create causativity or to emphasize pronunciation.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic. The Dutch verb "zwichten" for "to make silent" has some cognates in other Germanic languages, but the verb "zwichten" of this entry seems not to have no known relatives. Therefore no hypothesis for Proto-Germanic can be made.

 

 

 

 
"...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: 28/11/2012 at 13.19.18