Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/widuz

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

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *h₁widʰ-u-s, and cognate with Proto-Celtic *widus (“wood, trees”), with both roots likely tracing further to Proto-Indo-European *h₁weydʰh₁- (“to separate, split, cleave, divide”) (whence Lithuanian vidùs (“middle”, i.e. “forested area between two habitations”)), perhaps with sense development “set apart, abandoned” > “desolate area like a forest” > “wood”.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwi.ðuz/

Noun

*widuz m

1. wood
2. tree
3. forest

Inflection

Declension of *widuz (u-stem)

	singular	plural
nominative	*widuz	*widiwiz
vocative	*widu	*widiwiz
accusative	*widų	*widunz
genitive	*widauz	*widiwǫ̂
dative	*widiwi	*widumaz
instrumental	*widū	*widumiz

Descendants

• Proto-West Germanic: *widu
  • Old English: widu, wudu, weadu
    • Middle English: wode
      • Scots: wod, wuid
      • English: wood
  • Old Saxon: widu, wido
    • Middle Low German: wēde
  • Old Dutch: *widu
    • Middle Dutch: wēde
      • Dutch: wede, (in placenames) -wedde (e.g. Onstwedde)
  • Old High German: witu
    • Middle High German: wite
• Proto-Norse: *ᚹᛁᛞᚢᛉ (*widuʀ)
  • Old Norse: viðr, vyðr
    • Icelandic: viður
    • Faroese: viður
    • Norwegian Nynorsk: ved, vid
    • Elfdalian: wið
    • Old Swedish: viþer, vedher
      • Swedish: ved
    • Old Danish: with
      • Danish: ved
        • Norwegian Bokmål: ved
• → Proto-Finnic: *viita
  • Finnish: viita