Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/plōgaz

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

*plōguz

Etymology

Mario Alinei[1] has proposed a borrowing from Proto-Celtic *ɸlowyos, *ɸlowyā (“rudder”)[2], itself from Proto-Indo-European *plówyos (“ship”), ultimately from the root *plew- (“to fly, flow, swim, float, run”). Compare Cornish lew (“rudder”), Old Irish luí (“rudder, tail”), Welsh llyw (“rudder, tail, leader, pilot”). Ancient Greek πλοῖον (ploîon) is derived from the same root formation. Compare furthermore Albanian plor or pluar (“prow, ploughshare, vomer bone”), supposedly from Ancient Greek πλώρη (plṓrē, “prow”), which should be from πρῷρα (prôira, “prow”), whence also prow.

Alinei also mentions the Latin plaumoratum (Pliny the Elder, Naturalis historia 18.69), with the second element possibly relating to the family of Latin rota, Proto-Celtic *rotos and Proto-Germanic *raþą (“wheel”). Guus Kroonen has suggested a connection of the Germanic and the Latin words to *plehan (“to take responsibility, care”) (“to care for one’s life” > “to plow”); compare Old High German pfluog (“livelihood”) and Icelandic plógur, plóg (“profit”), which could nevertheless point as well to the opposite morpho-semantic evolution. Otherwise he proposes a connection with Proto-Germanic *plag/kkōn- (“rag, sod”), which seems a bit far-fetched.[3]

Noun

*plōgaz m

plough

Inflection

masculine a-stemDeclension of *plōgaz (masculine a-stem)
	singular	plural
nominative	*plōgaz	plōgōz, plōgōs
vocative	*plōg	plōgōz, plōgōs
accusative	*plōgą	*plōganz
genitive	plōgas, plōgis	*plōgǫ̂
dative	*plōgai	*plōgamaz
instrumental	*plōgō	*plōgamiz

Descendants

Proto-West Germanic: *plōg
- Old English: plōh
  - Middle English: plouh, plugh, plough, plouw, plow (partially)
    - Scots: pleuch, plou
    - English: plough, plow (partially)
      - → Fiji Hindi: falaawaa
    - Yola: pleough
- Old Frisian: plōch
  - North Frisian: plog
  - Saterland Frisian: Plouch
  - West Frisian: ploech
- Old Saxon: *plōg
  - Middle Low German: plôg
    - Low German: Ploog
    - Plautdietsch: Pluach, Plüach
- Old Dutch: *pluog
  - Middle Dutch: ploech
    - Dutch: ploeg
      - Afrikaans: ploeg
    - Limburgish: plógk
- Old High German: phluog, pfluog
  - Middle High German: pfluoc
    - Central Franconian: Plooch, Pluuch
      Hunsrik: Plugh
      Luxembourgish: Plou
    - East Central German:
      Vilamovian: fłüg
    - East Franconian:
    - German: Pflug
    - Rhine Franconian: Plug
- Lombardic: plōvum
Old Norse: plógr
- Icelandic: plógur
- Faroese: plógv
- Norn: plu
- Norwegian: plog
- Old Swedish: plōgher
  - Swedish: plog
- Danish: plov
- Elfdalian: pluog
- Gutnish: plog
- → Middle English: plouh, plugh, plough, plouw, plow (partially)
  - English: plough (partially)
→ Latin: plōvum, ploum
→ Proto-Slavic: *plugъ
- → Albanian: plug
- → Romanian: plug

References

Alinei, Mario (2000), Origini delle lingue d’Europa, vol. 2, Bologna: Il Mulino, page 567 ff.
Matasović, Ranko (2009), “*flowyo-, *flowyā”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 136
Kroonen, Guus (2009), “plōga-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, consulted online.

Du Cange et al., Glossarium mediæ et infimæ latinitatis, Niort : L. Favre, 1883-1887 «plovum, ploum» (online)

[1] Alinei, Mario (2000), Origini delle lingue d’Europa, vol. 2, Bologna: Il Mulino, page 567 ff.

[2] Matasović, Ranko (2009), “*flowyo-, *flowyā”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 136

[3] Kroonen, Guus (2009), “plōga-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, consulted online.