E 1006             WIT , WITAN, WITNESS

English "wit"and " witness " and  the Old English word "witan"

 are of Germanic origin . The word " idea " is of Greek origin .

H 1039         ע ד י

Concept of root : to see and know

 Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ע ד י

yad‛à

to know

Related English words

wit, witness, idea ; Old English witan

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ע ד י

yad‛à

to perceive, observe, know

y . d (‛) .<

w . d (‛) .

Modern

Hebrew

ע ד י

yad‛à

to know

y . d (‛) . <

w . d (‛) .

Greek

ιδεα ;

ιδειν

( ειδω , οιδα)

idea ;

idein

( eido,

oida )

idea ;

to observe; see, know
(1st. p.sing)

y . d . <

*w . d .

Latin

videre

vidére

see,observe,

perceive,

understand

v . d

Russian

видеть ;

ведать

widetj ;

wyedatj

to see, perceive;

to know

w . d

Polish

widzieć ;

wiedzieć

widzyetsh ;

wyedzyetsh

to see ;

to know

w . d

Czech

vidět ;

vědět

widyět ;

vyědyět

to see ;

to know

w . d

Germanic

* witan

witan

to see

w . t

Old  Norwegian

vitja

vitja

to look at, see to, visit

v . t

Old English

witan

to know

w . t

English

wit ;

witness ;

idea

wit ;

witness ;

idea

w .t ;

-

y . d .

Danish

vide (ved)

wide (véd)

to know (know)

w . d

Dutch

weten

wéten

to know

w . t

German

wissen

wissen

to know

w . s

 

 

Proto-Semitic *YAD‛À < *WAD‛À --- *VĪD-, *VĒD- Indo-European

 

 

The similarity between the words of this entry is not immediately obvious. We see on the one hand Hebrew and the Indo-European language Greek using an initial I or Y , on the other hand the further European languages having an initial V or W. It is therefore important to know that both Hebrew and Greek have abolished their initial V’s or W ‘s . Greek mostly just by eleminating them , Hebrew by changing them into I or Y . They have done so nearly invariably . With that the basic similarity between the words of the above table becomes more clear.

 

And there is even more. The verb with the root "Yod Daleth Ayin" in the reflexive form, that has a prefix "hit-", is : "ה ת ו ד ע = hitwaddé‛à", with "Waw Daleth Ayin". So it has maintained the original Waw.

 

Yet there can be seen an obvious difference in the fact that Hebrew , after the dental D , uses the letter Ayin, a special Semitic guttural that does not exist in Indo-European languages . The Ayin, , for European ears interrupts the flow of sound with an audible guttural effect . It is considered a consonant and functions grammatically as such. There i a clear indication that this Ayin is a later development, as there also exixts a verb that has an Aleph instead . This can be seen in entry E 0966 (Hebrew 1029). Here we find, also picked up in modern Hebrew , a not obliterate version of the more original root beginning with W . And that root then also has an Aleph instead of an Ayin .

 

As to Greek , there is a common opinion that " eido" comes from " *weido" . Remains the question if the similarity in sound corresponds with related meanings , with a common origin possible .

 

 

Note:
  • Related meanings. In human thinking and reasoning there exists a strong link, based on practical experience, between the concepts of seeing, observing, understanding and knowing. In practice the use of words like English "to see" also comprehends aspects of observing, understanding and knowing. In the Greek words of this entry this is extremely clearly expressed by the use of one single root for all three those "idea’s". Latin does partially work in the same direction. Very clear is the concept in Polish, Czech and also Russian that use the same consonantial root for "to see" and " to know ", just by changing the vowel. But also in Hebrew we see two concepts already served by what originally was one root :

 

Note:
  • Biblical and modern Hebrew show us a difference between them , in that modern Hebrew has concentrated the meaning of this verb " yad’a" on the concept of " to know " , whereas in the Bible also the concepts of " perceiving " , "observing" and "discerning" were still served by this same root . But already in Biblical Hebrew we also observe that the causative version as well as the intensive one both say : " to make ( someone ) know " and the causative version also means : " to communicate , make known " . This in a way anticipates the aforementioned concentration on " to know " .

 

Note:
  • Hebrew. Especially interesting is a slightly different trail, along which we find in Hebrew the concepts of erudition and knowledge expressed by just this couple of two letters , ד and ע . These letters are the same that we have found in this entry preceded by a Yod י or Waw ו . The most significant words we aim at are " ד ע , ד ע ה , ד ע ת , dé‛a , dé‛a , da‛at". They all mean "erudition" and "da‛at" is also used for "knowledge" and "discernment, understanding". The striking thing is that these words carry the concept of "to know" without having those initial letters W or Y. Or when making another step : the Waw and Yod we find in the Hebrew words of this entry, probably have been prefixes . We find those words in entry E 0257 (Hebrew 0302) .

 

Note:
  • Greek and Hebrew. Greek in modern language oddly and perhaps involuntarily confirms that in "eido" >< "* weido "the most essential part of the meaning, the initial "seeing" , is carried by the D-sound. It shows this in the subjunctive flexions of the verb "to see", that are "δω, do" and " δει, di" etcetera. This brings us once more somewhat nearer to Hebrew .

 

Note:
  • Hebrew on the basis of an old brief two consonant ( nearly one only "real" consonant ) root , "* ד א " also has developed " ב ד א , bad’à" that stands for "to conceive, invent , think out". This remains within the wider field of practical knowledge. We find the root " ב ד א " , in entry number E 0091 (Hebrew 0235) .

     

    If an original root of a single dental D in the past carried the concepts of seeing and/or knowing, than this must have been long before Indo-European , or elements of it , split from Semitic or elements of it.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic. Some Semitic languages like Akkadian and Soqotri lack the Y as first consonant . Interesting for our comparison is that the southern language Mehri ( or Mahri ) has ( kept ) a Waw as first consonant in " weda ". These realities give a good support for our hypothesis in this entry .

     

    Several scholars see a root " י ד ע, *Y . D . Ayin " (Yod, Daleth Ayin). This root has developed out of a "Waw Daleth Ayin), as seen in Hebrew. And the root with the initial Waw must have been present in Proto-Semitic , if it is seen in Hebrew. Besides, we see in the Mehri language the word "w'da". The conclusion for Proto-Semitic must be as follows: "*ו ד ע, *W . D . Ayin ", developing into the newer "*Y . D .Ayin ".

     

    The actual Hebrew root is also seen in Aramaic "י ד ע, yed‛a", Ugaritic "י ד ע" and Ethiopian "ayde‛a = he made known".

 

Note:
  • Latin, a bit in between Greek and Germanic and this time not only geographically, has the accent on seeing but has not abandoned part of the other messages.

 

Note:
  • English in the field of this entry has the word " wit " as the capability of acquiring knowledge. Apart from this, it seems to have nearly abandoned this root for "to know" . It was still present in Old English "witan = to know ".

 

Note:
  • Germanic. Originally, as is supposed, Germanic had the word "* witan " with the meaning of " to see " . Later on the root has gradually concentrated on the concept of "to know ". A possible exception is English " witness" for " he who has seen things", though not all agree on this and translate Old English "witnes" also as "knowledge". The dental in Germanic has become a T, with the exception of Danish that has maintained D. And in many flexions, such as several forms of the past tense and participles, the D , via DZ (or the English style voiced TH ) has become "S" . German , but not Low German, has shifted fully to double S : " wissen ". But an S we also find in English " wise " and " wisdom ".

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic. The first consonant is in West Germanic languages and Gothic a "W". In North Germanic the spelling is "V", but the pronunciation is practically the same. The following consonant is a mostly long " Ī", except in Middle Dutch, Dutch, Middle Low German and Swedish with Old Swedish where one finds a vowel "Ē", that can be considered in both cases as a local development.

     

    The second and closing consonant is nearly always a "T", with the typically voiced "D" in Danish "vide" after Old Danish "witæ" and with in another typical development German "wissen" with "SS" after the post alveolar "ZZ" in its predecessor. In verbal and nominal forms other vowels can be seen, especially "EI" (German "weiss, Old Norse "veit") "Ā" (Old English wāt, wāst"), "U" (German "wusste, gewusst"). Where the basic verb has "E", also a short "I" may be found, as in Swedish "visste" and Dutch "wist". Such an "I" is as well present in English "wit".

     

    Proto-Germanic presumably had "*W Ē T-", with in verbal or nominal forms other vowels as "A", "U" , "EI and "I".

 

Note:
  • Slavic. As mentioned above, Russian, Czech and Polish use the root of this entry for " to see " as well as for " to know " , with just different vowels .But important is as well, that these vowels, " I " for "to see" and " E " for "to know", can be found in the other groups, often in the verbs with comparable meaning. It must be noted that Russian for "to know", commonly uses another verb, "Знать, znatj = to know" that is a cognate of English "to know".

 

Note:
  • Hebrew and Indo-European. Hebrew "yad‛a" has the accent on the second part . Most Indo-European words of this entry have the accent on the first part.

     

    The stress in Hebrew wad’a and yad‛a lies on syllables beginning with the consonants Aleph and Ayin . Nearly all consonants , like b, d , k, s , t, y , can be pronounced , if one wants, without the use of vowels. The two consonants Aleph and Ayin need vowels for a proper pronunciation . Their special characteristics have influenced their application in the development of the language .

 

Note:
  • Indo-European. Besides the various groups that were mentioned in the text, some others are important.

     

     

    Old Indian has "vindati = to find ", "vēda = I know" and vidyá = knowledge". A rich offer, with the two important vowels that are also seen in othe branches of Indo-European and on top of that a nasalized version! But this last one is just the same as found in English "to find", that is also related to the concept of "to perceive, know".

     

    Avestan shows vaēda = I know".

     

    Celtic contributes with Old Irish "ro fetar = I know".

     

    Baltic offers an Old Prussian "waidima = we know".

     

    Indo-European probably had for the logical chain of meanings that goes from "to look, see" to "to know": "*V Ī D-" , but it is quite probable that diversification had already taken place, with also the introduction of a different vowel, as in "*V Ē D-".

 

 

t

 

 

 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 05/01/2013 at 14.35.11