Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/helm

This Proto-West 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-West Germanic edit

Etymology 1 edit

From Proto-Germanic *helmaz.

Noun edit

*helm m

  1. helmet
Inflection edit
Masculine a-stem
Singular
Nominative *helm
Genitive *helmas
Singular Plural
Nominative *helm *helmō, *helmōs
Accusative *helm *helmā
Genitive *helmas *helmō
Dative *helmē *helmum
Instrumental *helmu *helmum
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
  • Old English: helm
    • Middle English: helm
  • Old Frisian: helm
  • Old Saxon: helm
    • Middle Low German: helm
  • Old Dutch: helm
  • Old High German: helm
  • Latin: helmus [8th century, Reichenau Glossary] (see there for further descendants)
  • Proto-Slavic: *šelmъ (see there for further descendants)

Etymology 2 edit

From Proto-Germanic *helmaz, related to *halmaz (haulm, straw, hay; stalk) (whence *halm). The ablaut points to an older athematic paradigm in Proto-Indo-European, according to Kroonen probably *ḱélh₂m̥ ~ *ḱl̥h₂mós; compare Lithuanian kélmas (tree trunk).[1] The o-grade in *halmaz and cognates such as Latin culmus, Proto-Slavic *sòlma and Latvian sal̃ms may have come either from an accusative stem *ḱolh₂-m- or by analogy with the thematic suffix *-(ó)-mos.[2] In any case ultimately from the root *ḱelh₂- (to prick, stab; straw, reed).

Noun edit

*helm m

  1. a reedy grass that dries as hollow stalks: bentgrass (genus Agrostis or Ammophila); sedge
  2. Synonym of *halm (stalk, haulm, straw)
Inflection edit
Masculine a-stem
Singular
Nominative *helm
Genitive *helmas
Singular Plural
Nominative *helm *helmō, *helmōs
Accusative *helm *helmā
Genitive *helmas *helmō
Dative *helmē *helmum
Instrumental *helmu *helmum
Related terms edit
Descendants edit

References edit

  1. 1.0 1.1 Kroonen, Guus (2013) “*halma-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 204–205:*helma-
  2. 2.0 2.1 Kroonen, Guus (2011) “*helm, *hulmaz”, in The Proto-Germanic n-stems: A study in diachronic morphophonology, Amsterdam, New York: Rodopi, →ISBN, pages 162–163