E 0891          SWEAT

The word " sweat " is of Germanic origin .

H 1077           ע י ז ה  ; ע ז י , ה ע ז                      

Concept of root :  sweat

 Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

; ה ע ז

; ע ז י

 -

ע י ז ה  

zé‛à ;

yez‛à ;

 -

hizi‛a

 sweat ;

 sweat ;

 -

  to sweat

Related English words

 sweat

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ה ע ז ;

ע ז י ;

-

ע י ז ה

zé‛à ;

yez‛à;

-

hizi‛a

 sweat ;

sweat;

-

to sweat

 z . (‛) . ;

y . z (‛) .< *w . z (‛). ;

z . (‛) .

English

sweat

sweat

s w . t

Dutch

zweet

zwét

sweat

z w . t

Latin

sudare

sudare

to sweat

s (u) d

 

 

Proto-Semitic *ZEWAT --- *SWĒD- Indo-European

 

 

The English word has a final T, which would be a very normal addition in Germanic, also without effecting any change in the meaning of the word itself. Dutch and Nordic have the same, but in German this became an S (Schweiss).

 

The difference remains that the Indo-Europeans have an U or W, that corresponds usually with a Hebrew Y or W, but that here this is not present as such in Hebrew. Perhaps in this case the W can be considered as corresponding with the Ayin ( ‛ ) in Hebrew, that is an articulation in the word. This may have to remain hypothetical for the moment. But we will find some support in other Semitic languages. See our Note on Proto-Semitic.

 

 

Note:
  • Hebrew uses here the causative form to express " to sweat " . The basic form , that should have been "*za‛à" or with prefix "*yez‛à" , is not found registered. There is another word for "sweat", that is " י ז ע , yez‛à " that indicates a second root with a Yod added as prefix. As a verb this might indicate the action of the perspiration coming out of the skin, as well as that of the person perspiring.

     

    The just mentioned causative verb is seen in Post Biblical Hebrew, but the basic verb was anyhow present in Biblical times, seen its convincingly presumed construction with a prefix " Y " <: " W ", which can mean a message "to be in sweat = to sweat"

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic . Akkadian has the word "zu'tu", with a root " Z W Ayin T ", that is very near to Dutch ! Then we find Eblaitic "shudum"as well as "du'tum". Often there is in language a changing over between D and Z, with intermediate forms as DZ or English TH in "there". Also Aramaic has various forms in its branches, like "zi'ata" , "di'ata", " 'adwuta". It is hard to conclude with certainty how the root must have been in Proto-Semitic. And scholars indeed renounce to do so . The only indication that remains lies then in the similarity especially between English, or better Dutch and Akkadian. The hypothetical root for Proto-Semitic becomes thus " * ז ו ת, Z W T ", zewat", then further developing with the introduction of the Ayin, and creating the various forms we have seen .

 

Note:
  • English and Hebrew. Besides the similarity in this entry, the root of the previous note on Hebrew, of the word "yez‛à" , probably has been " * ו ז ע, wez‛à, W . Z . (‛) " . This makes it seem to be related with the English verb " to ooze ". This word expresses amongst other things what sweat does. The initial sound "U" of "ooze" corresponds with the *W in Hebrew.

     

    This becomes more probable if we see that the Germanic root for " to sweat " also expresses basically the "oozing out" of blood of a wounded animal.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic. We find in Old Norse "sveite = to sweat" and in Old Swedish "svēte = to sweat". The noun "svēt = sweat" is seen in Old Danish, Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Middle Low German". Nearly the same sound is there is Swedish "svett", Norwegian "svette", Middle Dutch "sweet" and Dutch "zweet". Then we note a number of common developments: Danish goes to "sved", Old High German says "sweiz" and German "Schweiss". Old English is a bit out of line with "swætan = to sweat" and "swāt = sweat". Presumably Proto-Germanic had "*S W Ē T".

 

Note:
  • Indo-European. We find a hypothesis of "*S W EI D-", which may well be right, though also "*S W Ē D-" is quite possible. Indications come from various languages.

     

    Tocharian "syā- = to sweat", amazingly near to Hebrew.

     

    Old Indian "svéda- = sweat".

     

    Avestan "xvaēda- = sweat".

     

    Greek "ιδος, idos = sweat" comes from an older root "*swid-".

     

    Latin "sudo, sudare = to sweat" has a supposed older root "*suoid-", but this is quite uncertain or rather improbable. Instead of this, the vowel "E", no more necessary once the "W" becomes pronounced like a vowel "Ū", has simply been abolished.

 

 

 

 
"...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: 20/12/2012 at 10.38.57