𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰

Gothic

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *uhsô, from Proto-Indo-European *uksḗn (“bull”), akin to English ox, German Ochse, and Icelandic oxi, and Sanskrit उक्षन् (ukṣan). A variant u-stem lemma *auhsus was once thought to underlie the forms auhsau and *auhsum (superseded reading, see below), but this view is no longer current among scholars.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔh.sa/

Noun

𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰 • (auhsa) m

2. ox, neat (adult bovine specimen)
   • 4th Century, Wulfila (tr.), Gothic Bible: Book of Daniel (Gothica Bononiensia, folio 2 verso) 4.33, (quoted within the Bologna sermon):

     […] 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐌼𐌰𐍄𐌹𐌳𐌰 𐌷𐌰𐍅𐌹 𐍃𐍅𐌴 [𐌰]𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰, 𐌾‹𐌰›𐌷 […]

     […] jah matida hawi swē [a]uhsa, j‹a›h […]

     […] and he ate grass as an ox, and […] (Brenton Septuagint Translation).

   • 4th century C.E., Wulfila (attributed), Gothic Bible, Luke 14:19:

     𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 𐌵𐌰𐌸: 𐌾𐌿𐌺𐌰 𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌴 𐌿𐍃𐌱𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍄𐌰 𐍆𐌹𐌼𐍆 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐌲𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌰 𐌺𐌰𐌿𐍃𐌾𐌰𐌽 𐌸𐌰𐌽𐍃; 𐌱𐌹𐌳𐌾𐌰 𐌸𐌿𐌺, 𐌷𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌹 𐌼𐌹𐌺 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌵𐌹𐌸𐌰𐌽𐌰𐌽𐌰.

     jah anþar qaþ: juka auhsnē usbauhta fimf jah gagga kausjan þans; bidja þuk, habai mik faurqiþanana.

     And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. (KJV)

   • 4th century C.E., Wulfila (attributed), Gothic Bible, 1 Timothy 5:18:

     𐌵𐌰𐌸 𐌰𐌿𐌺 𐌲𐌰𐌼𐌴𐌻𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃: 𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰𐌿 𐌸𐍂𐌹𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌹𐌽 𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌸 𐌽𐌹 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍂𐍅𐌰𐌹𐍀𐌾𐌰𐌹𐍃; 𐌾𐌰𐌷: 𐍅𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌸𐍃 𐍃𐌰 𐍅𐌰𐌿𐍂𐍃𐍄𐍅𐌰 𐌼𐌹𐌶𐌳𐍉𐌽𐍃 𐌹𐍃𐍄.

     qaþ auk gamēleins: auhsau þriskandin munþ ni faurwaipjais; jah: wairþs sa waurstwa mizdōns ist.

     For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward. (KJV)

Declension

Irregular inflection preserving zero-grade forms. Attested only in the nominative singular, accusative singular, dative singular and genitive plural. The rest of the forms below are conjectural, based mostly on the u-stems. The u-stem forms in the singular presumably came about from the regular dative plural *𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌿𐌼, which was identical to dative plural of the u-stems.

The second appearance of the words in 1 Corinthians 9:9 was read by Streitberg as 𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌿𐌼 (auhsum, dative plural), but Ebbinghaus's (1972) reading as 𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌿𐌽𐍃 (auhsnuns, accusative plural) is today the usual reading. For discussion of the various forms and variant readings of the dative and accusative singular, see Miller (2017) and Bammesberger (1990) with references.

Masculine mixed an/u stem, contraction in the plural
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰 auhsa	*𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌾𐌿𐍃 *auhsnjus
Vocative	*𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰 *auhsa	*𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌾𐌿𐍃 *auhsnjus
Accusative	𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰𐌿 auhsau	𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌿𐌽𐍃 auhsnuns
Genitive	*𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰𐌿𐍃? *auhsaus?	𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌽𐌴 auhsne
Dative	𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌰𐌿 auhsau	*𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃𐌿𐌼 *auhsum

Hyponyms

• 𐌺𐌰𐌻𐌱𐍉 (kalbō, “heifer”)
• 𐍃𐍄𐌹𐌿𐍂 (stiur, “male calf”)

Coordinate terms

• 𐌲𐌰𐌹𐍄𐍃 (gaits, “goat”)
• 𐌻𐌰𐌼𐌱 (lamb, “sheep, lamb”)
• 𐌿𐌻𐌱𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌿𐍃 (ulbandus, “camel”)
• 𐍃𐍅𐌴𐌹𐌽 (swein, “pig”)

Further reading

• Bammesberger, Alfred (1990) Die Morphologie des urgermanischen Nomens (in German), Heidelberg: Winter, →ISBN, page 170
• Falluomini, Carla (2016) “Textausgabe des gotischen Codex Bononiensis”, in Anite Auer and Michiel de Vaan, editors, Le palimpseste gotique de Bologne Études philologiques et linguistiques / The Gothic Palimpsest from Bologna Philological and Linguistic Studies (Cahiers de l’ILSL, no. 50) (in German), pages 11–20
• Lehmann, Winfred P. (1986) “A229. *auhsa”, in A Gothic Etymological Dictionary, based on the 3rd ed. of Feist’s dictionary, Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 40
• Streitberg, Wilhelm (1910). Die gotische Bibel. Zweiter Teil: Gotisch-griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch. Heidelberg: Carl Winter’s Universitätsbuchhandlung, p. 14
• Miller, D. Gary (2019) The Oxford Gothic Grammar, Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 62