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E 0253 (TO) DEPART
The verb " to depart " is, via Old French, odf Latin origin .
H 0738 ר
ט
פ
Concept of root : to
( make ) go away, set free, send off
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Hebrew word
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pronunciation
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English meanings
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ר ט פ
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pathar;
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pether
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to (make) go
away, let go, send off ;
(first) opening, first birth
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Related English words
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to
depart
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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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ר ט פ
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pathar;
-
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pether
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to (make) go away, let go, set free;
(first) opening, first birth
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p . th . r
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Italian
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partire;
parto
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partire;
parto
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to go away;
childbirth
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p . r t
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Latin
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parere;
partus
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parere;
partus
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to give birth; childbirth
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p . r
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English
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to depart
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to depart
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p . r t
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Proto-Semitic *PATHAR --- PARTIRI Latin
The first thing to be remarked is that the sequence of the three consonants is different between Latin and Hebrew. This may lead to the conclusion that there is no relationship or that there has been a metathesis between "P RT" and "P TH R" somewhere along the road of development. We have to choose the hypothesis of a metathesis.
Note:
- Latin. In order to get some idea of the etymology of the Italian words of this entry we must look at a number of Latin words that are often linked together :
- 1. "pars, partis = part";
- 2. "parare = to prepare";
- 3. "pario, parere = to give birth, to obtain" with "partio = childbirth";
- 4. "partus = childbirth, child ";
- 5. "partire" and "partiri" = to divide, obtain one’s share".
Avoiding to go into all the details we presume that the numbers 1 and 5 are related. They have no link to the words of this entry, as some suppose. "To go away" , in Italian "partire" hardly can have been construed as a "separating oneself as a part ", as some think.
Number 2 stands alone. It has led to English "to prepare". It did not mean "to acquire", but in the preparation of for example an army can lead to the acquisition of the same. But this is not a basic message of the root.
Number 3 and 4 are obviously related.
An important aspect is that already in classic Latin the verb under 5. , "partire", was out of use and had left the field in favour of the medio-passive form "partiri".
Note:
- Italian and Hebrew each use their respective roots, "P RT" and "P TH R", to express both messages of this entry, that are "to go away" , "make go away" or "put into the world" and "to give birth". These may well be related . A mother places her baby in the world. But Latin, unlike Italian, seems to to have used this same root to the end of saying : "to make go away" or "to go away". Italian "partire" does so, but still expresses as well the concept of "to divide".
Note:
- Italian and Latin. The link between Latin "partus" and Italian "parto" is direct : it is the same word, in Italian used only in what in Latin was the most commonly used case, that is the ablative " parto ".
But the verb "partire" seems not to be linked to any Latin word meaning "to go away". This language uses three quite different roots to express this concept : "abire", "proficisci" and "discedere". Then what about English "to depart" ? It comes from French, where a "départ" is a "departure". Once again scholars say that all this comes from "to divide" in the form of "to divide oneself from the others = to depart". One should note that there is no composite verb "*departire" known in Latin . So when was this formed ? Did the medieval Latin-speakers still build new verbs in this Latin way ?
Things remain odd. For example Middle English "departen", still meant "to divide". How come the English would repeat such an odd trick the Italians or their predecessors are accused of ? It seems a very forced and superfluous exercise of forming words.
We can only conclude that the couple of basic concepts of this entry that lived on in Hebrew, never fully died in the realm of Latin tongues either. Regretfully we lack written testimony to show the iter that was followed. The disappearance of the basic verb "partire" in favour of the medio-passive form "partiri" may have been a factor, but there is no certainty.
Note:
- Proto-Semitic. The root "P TH R" is used in various meanings. The specific one of this entry is, besides of course in Hebrew, present in Aramaic and Syriac "פ ט ר , pethar = to let go, dismiss (A); to go away, depart (S". It may have been in use in Proto-Semitic: "*פ ט ר , P TH R"".
Note:
- Indo-European. The way back to Indo-European or better the way that led from Indo-European to Latin "patio" and then Italian "partire" has not been cleared. Our comparison for the moment has to remain beteewn Semitic and Latin.
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| Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 21/11/2012 at 9.58.30 |
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