Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/maitaną

This Proto-Germanic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Germanic

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *mey- (“small”) or *meh₂y- (“to cut”) (compare Proto-Celtic *mailos (“bald”)).

In view of the likely causative *maidijaną (“to hurt”), Kroonen assumes the original form of this verb was *maiþaną, from Pre-Germanic *moitH-, with contamination from the related *mittōną (“to cut”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɑi̯.tɑ.nɑ̃/

Verb

*maitaną

1. to cut, hew
2. to cut off, sever

Inflection

Conjugation of *maitaną (strong class 7a)

	active voice			passive voice
present tense	indicative	subjunctive	imperative	indicative	subjunctive
1st singular	*maitō	*maitaų	—	*maitai	?
2nd singular	*maitizi	*maitaiz	*mait	*maitazai	*maitaizau
3rd singular	*maitidi	*maitai	*maitadau	*maitadai	*maitaidau
1st dual	*maitōz	*maitaiw	—	—	—
2nd dual	*maitadiz	*maitaidiz	*maitadiz	—	—
1st plural	*maitamaz	*maitaim	—	*maitandai	*maitaindau
2nd plural	*maitid	*maitaid	*maitid	*maitandai	*maitaindau
3rd plural	*maitandi	*maitain	*maitandau	*maitandai	*maitaindau
past tense	indicative	subjunctive
1st singular	*memait	*memaitį̄
2nd singular	*memaist	*memaitīz
3rd singular	*memait	*memaitī
1st dual	*memaitū	*memaitīw
2nd dual	*memaitudiz	*memaitīdiz
1st plural	*memaitum	*memaitīm
2nd plural	*memaitud	*memaitīd
3rd plural	*memaitun	*memaitīn
	present	past
participles	*maitandz	*maitanaz

Related terms

• *maitilaz
• *maitijaną

Descendants

• Proto-West Germanic: *maitan
  • (Old English: mǣded, mǣdd, ġemǣded, ġemǣdd (ppt; adj))
    • (Middle English: madd, medd, mad, med)
      • (Scots: madde, mad)
      • (English: mad)
  • Old High German: meizan
    • Middle High German: meizen
• Old Norse: meita (wk vb) (through confluence with *maitijaną)
  • Icelandic: meita
  • Norwegian: meita
  • Swedish: meta
• Gothic: 𐌼𐌰𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (maitan)

Further reading

• Kroonen, Guus (2013) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN