Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/gnaganą

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

Alternative forms

*knaganą

Etymology

Probably onomatopoeic; or from Proto-Indo-European *gʰnēgʰ- (“to gnaw, scratch”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰen- (“to gnaw, grate, scrate, whit”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈɣnɑ.ɣɑ.nɑ̃/

Verb

*gnaganą^[1]^[2]^[3]

to gnaw

Inflection

Conjugation of *gnaganą (strong class 6)

present tense	indicative	subjunctive	imperative	indicative	subjunctive
	active voice			passive voice
1st singular	*gnagō	*gnagaų	—	*gnagai	?
2nd singular	*gnagizi	*gnagaiz	*gnag	*gnagazai	*gnagaizau
3rd singular	*gnagidi	*gnagai	*gnagadau	*gnagadai	*gnagaidau
1st dual	*gnagōz	*gnagaiw	—	—	—
2nd dual	*gnagadiz	*gnagaidiz	*gnagadiz	—	—
1st plural	*gnagamaz	*gnagaim	—	*gnagandai	*gnagaindau
2nd plural	*gnagid	*gnagaid	*gnagid	*gnagandai	*gnagaindau
3rd plural	*gnagandi	*gnagain	*gnagandau	*gnagandai	*gnagaindau

past tense	indicative	subjunctive
1st singular	*gnōg	*gnōgį̄
2nd singular	*gnōht	*gnōgīz
3rd singular	*gnōg	*gnōgī
1st dual	*gnōgū	*gnōgīw
2nd dual	*gnōgudiz	*gnōgīdiz
1st plural	*gnōgum	*gnōgīm
2nd plural	*gnōgud	*gnōgīd
3rd plural	*gnōgun	*gnōgīn

	present	past
participles	*gnagandz	*gnaganaz

Descendants

Proto-West Germanic: *gnagan, *knagan
- Old English: gnagan, *cnagan
  - Middle English: gnaȝen, gnawen, knawen
    - Scots: gnaw, knaw
    - English: gnaw, knaw
- Old Frisian: *gnaga
  - Saterland Frisian: gnaue; gnauje; gnauelje
  - West Frisian: gnauwe
- Old Saxon: knagan, gnagan
  - Middle Low German: gnāgen, knāgen
    - German Low German: gnagen, gnauen
    - Plautdietsch: gnoagen
- Old Dutch: *gnagan, *cnagan
  - Middle Dutch: cnagen
    - Dutch: knagen, knauwen (possibly a contamination of knagen and kauwen)
      - Afrikaans: knaag, knae
- Old High German: gnagan, knagan, nagan
  - Middle High German: nagen
    - German: nagen
Old Norse: gnaga, naga
- Icelandic: naga
- Faroese: gnaga, naga
- Norn: nava (borrowed?)
- Norwegian Nynorsk: gnaga, knaga, naga; (dialectal) gnågå
  - → Danish: gnage
    - Norwegian Bokmål: gnage
  - → Scots: nag, knag, kneggum
- Old Swedish: gnagha
  - Swedish: gnaga
- Danish: gnave, nage
  - Norwegian Bokmål: gnave
- Elfdalian: gnågå
- Gutnish: gnage
- → Middle English: *gnagen, *gnaggen, *naggen
  - → English: gnag, knag (dialectal), nag

References

^ Guus Kroonen (2013) “*gnagan-”, in Alexander Lubotsky, editor, Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11)‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 183
^ Vladimir Orel (2003) “*ʒnaʒanan”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 137
^ Seebold, Elmar (1970) “GNAG-A-”, in Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen starken Verben (Janua Linguarum. Series practica; 85) (in German), Paris, Den Haag: Mouton, →ISBN, page 233

[1] Guus Kroonen (2013) “*gnagan-”, in Alexander Lubotsky, editor, Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11)‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 183

[2] Vladimir Orel (2003) “*ʒnaʒanan”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 137

[3] Seebold, Elmar (1970) “GNAG-A-”, in Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen starken Verben (Janua Linguarum. Series practica; 85) (in German), Paris, Den Haag: Mouton, →ISBN, page 233

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