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E 0282 AREA , EARTH , ORE
The words "earth" and "ore" are of Germanic origin
H 0057 א ר ע
Concept of root: earth
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Aramaic word
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pronunciation
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English meanings
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א ר ע
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ar‛a
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earth
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Related English words
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earth
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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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Aramaic
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א ר ע ;
י ע ר א
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ar‛a
;
are‛i
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earth ;
terrain, ground
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a r ‛a ;
a r ‛i
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New Hebrew
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א ר ע א
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ar‛a
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earth
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a r a
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Latin
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area
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area
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terrain, open zone
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a r e
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Old English
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ēar
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earth
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ē a r
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English
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earth ,
ore ,
area
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earth
ore ,
area
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o r e
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French
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are
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are
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100 m2
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a r e
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Old Irish
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ūr
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earth, clay
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u r
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Proto-Semitic *AR‛Á --- *ARÁ Indo-European
This root has very important developments. In Germanic languages we find two roots. The most common one has a dental , like in English "earth", German "Erde" and Dutch "Aarde". This has happened also in Hebrew, where the common word voor "earth" is "arets" or "erets". See the specific entry for this word, number E 0283 (Hebrew 0068) . In both Germanic and Hebrew as well as in Latin, also the root without dental is present.
Note:
- English. Old English had both "ēar" for "" for "earth" and " ē or " for "gravel". Changing a vowel in order to adapt or specialize a meaning is a normal phenomenon in Germanic languages. It is present in English, but especially strong in Dutch. And here we see it practised in Old English.
A version of our root with an "O"-sound instead of "A" is found as well in Dutch "oer (ur)" = "ore" and Old Norvegian "aurr" which says both "ore" and "gravel". Another development of the same root is shown under the entry E 0642 (Hebrew 0058) "
א
ר
ד " (arad).
Note:
- Aramaic. we see also another root, with a letter added, in
א
ר
ע
י (are‛i) with the specific meaning of "ground, terrain", exactly like Latin "area". This confirms the similarity we are supposing .
Note:
- Proto-Semitic. We refer first of all to entry E 0283 (Hebrew 0068). But anyhow Proto-Semitic will have had already the basic root " *א "
ר
ע, or perhaps an earlier less emphasized
" * א
ר
ה ".
Note:
- Latin. Contrary to what some believe, "area" in Latin has no correlation with "areo", "to be dry" considered to be akin to "ash", "to burn". This root exists, and is related to Hebrew "esh" ("fire") and English "ash". It may well have to do with "areo" and English "arson" but not with just an open terrain or earth. We do not share the idea that Latin "area" would been a free because burnt down piece of ground. The similarity with Hebrew also clears the ground from hazardous etymological theories.
Note:
- French. A French " are " measures only one hundred square meters, and an English acre forty times as much, but their stories are similar. Both have been shaped by using a word for an undefined but characteristic piece of terrain to indicate a specific measure. The French word has been loaned by other languages, but it may have come from Italian "ara" itself.
Note:
- Indo-European. For the meaning of this entry, "area" in the sense of a space of ground available for a purpose, defined or not yet defined, there is not much information. But Baltic shows an "A R- in Latvian "âr-a = free space, outside ground, agricultural field" a clear sister word.
Old High German has two words "arin, erin" that are related, with their meanings of "threshing floor" and "paved space" This would indicate a not improbable Proto-Germanic " A R (Y)-".
" A R + accentuated vowel-" may have existed with this and related meanings in Indo European , but it would be better if there would be more information from other groups besides Latin, Germanic and Baltic. We mention anyway Hittite "arha = area, limit, bank" and Lydian "aara = land property, court" , that reinforce the hypothesis.
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| Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 25/09/2012 at 16.13.32 |
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