Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/ubilaz

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.

Cognate with Proto-Celtic *uɸelos (“bad, evil”), but the source is disputed. Possibly either:

• From Proto-Indo-European *h₂upélos, from a root *h₂wep(h₁)- (“bad, evil”) + *-elo-, thereby cognate with Hittite 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒍣 (huwapp-ⁱ, “to mistreat, harass”), 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒉺𒀸 (huwappa-, “evil, badness”). Kroonen doubts the comparison to Hittite on the grounds that the Hittite verb preserves an earlier meaning “to throw/cast away” and so the semantic development to “evil” was probably post-PIE.
• From Proto-Indo-European *upélos (“evil”, literally “going over or beyond (acceptable limits)”), from *upó, *up (“down, up, over”), thus it would be equivalent to *ub (“under”) +‎ *-ilaz. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

• IPA^(key): /ˈu.βi.lɑz/

*ubilaz (adverb *wirsiz, comparative *wirsizô, superlative *wirsistaz)

1. evil, bad

• *ilhilaz (North Germanic)

• *gōdaz

• Proto-West Germanic: *ubil
  • Old English: yfel, efel, eofel
    • Middle English: yvel, uvel, evel
      • English: evil
      • Scots: evil, ewil
  • Old Frisian: evel
    • Saterland Frisian: eeuwel
    • West Frisian: evel
  • Old Saxon: uvil
    • Middle Low German: ovel
      • Plautdietsch: iebel
    • → West Frisian: euvel
  • Old Dutch: uvil
    • Middle Dutch: evel, ovel, oevel
      • Dutch: euvel
        • Afrikaans: euwel
  • Old High German: ubil
    • Middle High German: übel, *üvel (West Central German)
      • German: übel
      • Luxembourgish: iwwel
• Gothic: 𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌻𐍃 (ubils)