E 0912          (TO)  THINK

The verb " to think " and the word " thought " are of Germanic origin .

H 0962              ן כ ת                  

Concept of root : think and consider

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ן כ ת

takhan;

-

tikkèn

to examen, evaluate, think over;

to define, place

Related English words

thought , to think

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ן כ ת

takhan ;

-

-

tikkèn

-

to examen, evaluate, think over;

to place, define

t . kh . n ;

-

-

t . kk . n

-

Greek

δοκεω

dokeo

to consider, think

d . k

Swedish

tänka

tenka

to think

t . nk

English

thought ;

to think

thought ;

to think

th . gh ;

th . nk

German

dachte ;

denken

dakhte ;

denken

(he) thought ;

to think

d  . kh ;

d . nk

Dutch

dacht ;

denken

dakht ;

denken

(he) thought ;

to think

d . kh ;

d . nk

 

 

Hebrew TAKHAN, TIKKÈN --- *DÈK Indo-European

 

 

Thinking is a principal activity of human beings, the human mind. Important in thinking is the share of considering, examining and evaluating in order to come to the proper conclusions for opinions or actions. In this table we see Greek "dokeo" as a kind of bridge between the Hebrew and English usages of this root of possible common origin.

 

Taking into consideration that Hebrew verbs are presented with the third person singular in the past tense, the similarity between "takhan = he thought" and Dutch "(hij) dacht = he thought" is striking.

 

The principal difference between the European words and the Hebrew root is that the last one has a third consonant, N , not seen in the others. This is not a matter of metathesis, as the N before the K in for example English is a form of nasalization that does not influence the message of the root. In the development of Hebrew there has been a nearly irresistable urge to extend briefer roots into three consonants, in various ways.

 

Therefore we must ask if the first two consonants already bear the basic idea of "to consider, think". Some limited indication there is. " ת ו ך , tokh" is "inner thought, hidden thought". But this root refers anyway to "inside, interior" also in other situations.

 

Note:
  • Hebrew. The basic verb "takhan" in modern Hebrew as to the meaning of "to examen, evaluate" has been substituted by the intensive version "tikkèn".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic. We lack information from other Semitic languages that would support a hypothesis that therefore remains based on Hebrew only: "*ת כ נ, T K N.

 

Note:
  • Greek "dokeo" has also developed some further uses, such as "to seem, appear (to him who considers ), intend (decision) ". It is, we think wrongly, seen as related to "δεχομαι, dekhomai = to receive , to gather".

 

Note:
  • Latin also has a verb "doceo, docui, doctum" with the meaning "to teach, inform". This may be related to the concept of "to think", in a series or sequence like "I think, I evaluate, I have an opinion, I know, I make to know, I teach". Usually though "doceo" is seen as a causative of a root "*DEK" that stands for "to receive", and is found in Greek "δεχομαι, dekhomai = to receive , to gather", but in a literal sense. We doubt that the two verbs are related. Then the Latin verb "doceo" is, in our view unconvincingly, seen as related to a word "decet = it becomes (esp. dress), adorns", obviously a form of the verb "deceo", that also lives on in English "decent".

 

Note:
  • English, like some of its sister-languages, uses two different roots in the various forms of the verb "to think". In the past tense we see "thought", together with German and Dutch "dacht(e)" that are near the Hebrew past tense "takhan". In the present tense, "think" we see an N introduced . This "nasalization" is practised very much in many European languages.

 

Note:
  • Germanic. The following picture emerges from a number of older and newer Germanic languages:

     

    Gothic thagkjan; thahta; thugkjan to think; though; to believe

     

    Old Norse thekkja ; thykkja ðekkya; ðükkya to think; to (make) think

     

    Old Swedish thækkia, thænkia; ðekkya; ðükkya to think; to (make) think

     

    Old Saxon thenkian thunkian to think; to (make) think

     

    Old English ðencan; ðyncan; thencan; thyncan to think; to (make) think

     

    Dutch dacht; denken ; dunken, docht thought; to think; to (make)think; (made) think

     

    German dachte, denken; dunken, dünken deucht thought; to think; to (make) think; (made) think

     

    Swedish tycka to believe, mean

     

 

Note:
  • Germanic, in its various languages, uses two different roots in the various forms of the verb "to think". In the past tense we see "thought", together with German and Dutch "dacht(e)" that are near the Hebrew past tense "takhan". In the present tense, "think" we see an N introduced . This "nasalization" is practised very much in many European languages.

 

Note:
  • English :I THINK; METHINKS . English has two verbs "to think". The first one comes from Old English "ðencan" and is the common verb "to think". The second one is a copula or link-verb. It comes from Old English "ðyncan" and, like its sisters in other Germanic languages it has a particular use, seen in the expressions "methinks" and "methought". The verbal form "thinks" is recognizably in the third person singular (methought is less univocal). The subject of the "thinking", the "person who thinks" is in the dative of the first person singular. In Old English the verb "thyncan" gave "me thyncth". This indicates an origin of causative meaning, that can be expressed as "to make think, to make believe", but in the expressions that remained in use, the subject of that action is not indicated.

     

    The same phenomenon is found in the absolutely current modern Dutch "Me dunkt", also "Mij dunkt". The second verb "to think", like Dutch "dunken" and Swedish "tycka", understandably have acquired a meaning near to that "to believe, find, mean" , and in fact this is reality in for example Swedish, where the subject of the verb is in the nominative and not in the dative. Interesting in modern Swedish is the passive verb "tyckas", that has acquired the meanings of "to seem, to seem to". Already in Middle Dutch we see the verb "dunken", that also can be "donken" and "dinken", used in the expressions "mi dunke" and "mi dinke".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic. First of all it is important to see that Germanic languages use two roots, one that is nasalized (to think) and one that is not (thought). And in Old Norse "thekkja", Old Swedish "thækkia" and also "thænkia", Gothic "thagkjan", but also in modern Icelandic ( a language based on Old Norse) "thekkja" and Faroese "tekkja" the nasalization has not arrived. Old Danish instead had already "thænkia". The mentioned consonants "TH" sound as in English "there" and we might have spelled "ðekkja" etc.. Old Saxon was nasalized, "thenkian" (TH as in think) and so was Old Frisian "thenka (modern "tinke"!), with Old English "thenkan", better spelled "ðencan". Old High German, German, Middle Dutch and Dutch all have "denken". Verbal forms of the past tense are English "thought", German and Dutch "dacht", without nasalization. In the modern Scandinavian languages the verbs are weak.

     

    There is an opinion that the forms without "N" have lost this sound, but that is highly improbable. Nasalization takes place for a reason of speaking. In front of a dental T, a K-sound tends to become KH and there is not much room for nasalization.

     

    The first consonant as already shown varies from &Eth; and TH to T and D. The fact that not only Dutch but also German has "D", makes it probable that the original was "Ð" and not "TH". This is confirmed by the development from Old English to modern English. The vowel is mostly "È" though this may be spelled "Æ". Exceptions are modern English and Old Gothic.

     

    This information leads to the conclusion that the nasalization has taken place : 1. In part of the verbal forms, especially present tense and infinitives. 2. Not so in many other verbal forms, especially past tense and past participle. 3. During or after Proto-Germanic.

     

    Presumably Proto-Germanic had for "to think" "*D È K-", with other vowels, especially "A" and "O" used in various verbal (past tense) and nominal forms. For the concept of "to make think" as found in the table, Proto-Germanic probably used "*D Ŭ K-". It can not be excluded that in some words nasalization had begun : "*D È NK-", "*D Ŭ NK-" .

 

Note:
  • Indo-European.

     

    Latin has a nasalized (!) "tongeo, tongēre" that is considered related to "to think". It is older language and its meaning is seen as linked to those of "scio" and "nosco" : "to know". The information gives little certainty. Greek and Germanic remain available and may indicate a Indo-European form "*D Ŏ K" or "*D È K-" for "to think".

 

 

 

 

 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 07/12/2012 at 17.20.16