wunung

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *wunungu, equivalent to wunian +‎ -ung. Cognate with Old Saxon wonunga, Old High German wonunga (German Wohnung).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwu.nunɡ/, [ˈwu.nuŋɡ]

Noun

wunung f

1. residence, home, dwelling.: place to stay or live
   • early 12th century, Life of St. Neot

     Hē him þǣr wununge ġetimbrode on swīðe fæġre stōwe.

     He built himself a home there in a very beautiful place.

   • late 10th century, Ælfric, "Memory of the Saints"

     and gif we forleosað þas lænan woruld-þingc, þonne sceole we witan þæt ure wunung nis na her ac is on heofonum gif we hopiað to gode.

     and if we lose the transitory things of this world, then should we know that our dwelling is not here, but is in heaven, if we hope in God.

2. staying or living in a certain place
   • c. 973, Æthelwold, translation of the Rule of Saint Benedict

     Ġif hēo eft on ǣniġne tīman hīe selfe tō mynstres wununge ġefæstnian wile, ne sīe nā hiere ġewilnung onsċunod.

     If at any time she wants to re-commit herself to monastic life, her desire should not be shunned.

3. existence, life
   • late 10th century, Ælfric, "The Passion of the Apostles Peter and Paul"

     Sē is libbende god þe hæfþ līf and wununge þurh hine selfne.

     He is the living god who has life and existence through himself.

Declension

Declension of wunung (strong ō-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	wunung	wununga, wununge
accusative	wununge	wununga, wununge
genitive	wununge	wununga
dative	wununge	wunungum

Derived terms

• inwunung
• midwunung
• onwunung
• samodwunung
• þurhwunung

Descendants

• Middle English: wununge, wunnunge, wuning, woning, wonyng
  • English: woning
  • Scots: wonnyng, wonyng, wonyn

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “wunung”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎^[1], 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.