Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bōks

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

Uncertain. Often linked to *bōkō (“beech”), though beechbark-writing, unlike birchbark-writing, is not known, nor is it well imaginable that it was the time for bookfells made from beeches already. Connected by some to Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂g- (“to allot”) ascribing to the word the meaning of “letter” in the sense of merely one or few symbols because letters would have primitively been ownership symbols, which would then have been generalized to any work with writing upon it.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bɔːks/

Noun

*bōks f

letter, written message, inscriptions carved into a flat object pressed together, “book”

Inflection

consonant stemDeclension of *bōks (consonant stem)
	singular	plural
nominative	*bōks	*bōkiz
vocative	*bōk	*bōkiz
accusative	*bōkų	*bōkunz
genitive	*bōkiz	*bōkǫ̂
dative	*bōki	*bōkumaz
instrumental	*bōkē	*bōkumiz

Derived terms

*bōkastabaz
*bōkalistiz
*bōkārijaz

Related terms

*bōkō

Descendants

Proto-West Germanic: *bōk
- Old English: bōc, bœ̄c
  - Middle English: bok, boc, boke, book, booke, buk, buke
    - English: book (see there for further descendants)
      - Northumbrian: beuk
    - Scots: buik, beuk, buke, beuck
    - Yola: buke
- Old Frisian: bōk
  - North Frisian:
    Föhr: buk
    Helgoland: Buk
    Mooring: bök
  - Saterland Frisian: Bouk
  - West Frisian: boek
- Old Saxon: bōk
  - Middle Low German: bôk, buk
    - Low German:
      Dutch Low Saxon: book
      German Low German: Book
    - Plautdietsch: Buak
- Old Dutch: *buok
  - Middle Dutch: boec
    - Dutch: boek (see there for further descendants)
    - Limburgish: book
    - → Middle French: boucquain (via diminutive forms *boeckin, *boeckijn)
      - French: bouquin
- Old High German: buoh, puoh
  - Middle High German: buoch
    - Alemannic German: Buech, Büäch
      Alsatian: Bööch, Büech
      Swabian: Buach
    - Bavarian: Buach
      Münsterländisch: Büak
    - Central Franconian: Booch, Buch
      Hunsrik: Buch
      Kölsch: Booch
      Luxembourgish: Buch
    - East Franconian: Bouch
    - German: Buch
    - Rhine Franconian: Buch, Busch
      Pennsylvania German: Buch
    - Vilamovian: büch
    - Yiddish: בוך‎ (bukh)
Old Norse: bók
- Icelandic: bók f
- Faroese: bók f
- Norwegian Nynorsk: bok f
- Norwegian Bokmål: bok m or f
- Elfdalian: buok f
- Old Swedish: bōk f
  - Swedish: bok
  - → Finnish: pyökki
- Old Danish: bok
  - Danish: bog c
- Gutnish: bok