Talk:mäktig

Connection to icelandic "máttugur"?

The page claims the entymology of the Old Swedish word "mæktoger" and claims it is borrowed from the Middle Low German word "mechtich" (neither having pages) and asks to compare with the Old Saxon word "mihhtig" but (and perhaps this is due to mæktoger not having a page) there is nothing on the page about the probable link between this word and máttugur via the Old Norse "máttigr". Seems inaccurate. 130.243.223.199 11:53, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

Proto-Germanic *ht /xt/ regularly becomes tt in North Germanic with the preceding vowel lengthened (this lengthening is lost in modern Swedish), compare Swedish natt < Old Norse nǫ́tt < Proto-Germanic *nahts, Swedish dotter < Old Norse dóttir < Proto-Germanic *duhtēr. The only time it is reflected as -kt- in Swedish is when borrowed from Low German, as in this case. The expected outcome of Proto-Germanic *mahtigaz would thus be **måttig in Swedish. So Icelandic máttugur and Swedish mäktig are related (both come from the same Proto-Germanic word), but the Icelandic is inherited from Old Norse while the Swedish is borrowed from Low German. ᛙᛆᚱᛐᛁᚿᛌᛆᛌ ᛭ Proto-Norsing ᛭ Ask me anything 15:22, 17 May 2024 (UTC)