Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/mey-

This Proto-Indo-European 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-Indo-European

Root

*mey-[1]

to strengthen

Derived terms

*moy-ni-
- Italic:
  - Latin: moenia, mūniō (see there for further descendants)
*moy-ro-
- Proto-Germanic: *mairiją (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Italic: *moiros (see there for further descendants)

Root

*mey-[2]

to bind

Derived terms

*mi-tró-
- Proto-Hellenic:
  - Ancient Greek: μίτρα f (mítra)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *mitrás m (see there for further descendants)

Root

*mey-[3]

to change
to exchange
to change places → to go past

Alternative reconstructions

*h₂mey-, if *h₂meygʷ- (“to exchange, to wander”) (compare Ancient Greek ἀμείβω (ameíbō) and Latin migro) belongs here.

Derived terms

Terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *mey- (change)

*h₂meygʷ- (possibly)
*méy-e-tor
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *máyatay
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *máyatay
    - Sanskrit: मयते (máyate)
*mi-s-dʰ(h₁)-ó-s
*mey-eh₂
- Proto-Italic: *meā
  - ⇒ Latin: meō
    - Italian: meare
    - Romansch: ir (within some conjugations)
*meyḱ-, *meyǵ- (possibly)
*m(e)y-t-s
- Italic:
  - Latin: (trā)mes (with *terh₂-) (see there for further descendants)
*mi-t-eh₂
- Proto-Italic: *sēmitā
  - Latin: (sē)mita (with *swé) (see there for further descendants)
*moy-teh₂
- Proto-Italic: *moitā
  - ⇒ Latin: mūtō (see there for further descendants)
*meyth₂-
*mi-néh₁-ti
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *mináHti
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *mináHti
    - Sanskrit: मिनाति (mināti, “to change”)
*mey-n-eh₂-
- Celtic:
  - Old Irish: mían (“desire, inclination”)
*moy-n-eh₂
- Proto-Balto-Slavic: *mainā́ˀ
  - Eastern Baltic:
    - Latvian: maîna, maĩņa
  - Proto-Slavic: *měna (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *máynaH
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *máynaH
    - Sanskrit: मेना (ménā, “concubine”)
*moy-n-éye-ti- (causative suffix)
- Proto-Balto-Slavic: *máinīˀtei
  - Latgalian: maineitʹ
  - Latvian: mainīt
  - Lithuanian: mainyti
  - Proto-Slavic: *měniti (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Germanic: *mainijaną (“to mean, think”) (see there for further descendants)
*moy-no-s
- Proto-Balto-Slavic:
  - Eastern Baltic:
    - Lithuanian: maĩnas
- Proto-Hellenic: *móinos
  - Ancient Greek: μοῖνος (moînos)
*moy-nos ~ *moy-nes-os
- Proto-Italic: *moinos (see there for further descendants)
*moy-ni-
- Proto-Celtic: *moinis (“treasure, precious object”) (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Germanic: *mainiz (“common”) (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Italic: *moinis
  - Latin: mūnis (“ready to be of service”), mūnia (“duties, functions”)
*ḱom-moy-ni-
- Proto-Germanic: *gamainiz (“shared, ordinary”) (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Italic: *kommoinis (see there for further descendants)
*n̥-moy-ni-
- Proto-Italic: *enmoinis
  - Latin: immūnis (“exempt from taxes or public service”) (see there for further descendants)
Unsorted formations:
- Balto-Slavic:
  - Latgalian: meitʹ (“to exchange”)
  - Latgalian: meja (“change”)
  - Lithuanian: mît (“to exchange”)
  - Proto-Slavic: *mimo (see there for further descendants)
  - Proto-Slavic: *minǫti (“to pass”) (see there for further descendants)
  - Proto-Slavic: *mito (“turn, twist, arc”)
    - ⇒ Proto-Slavic: *mitě (“in turn, following, alternately”) (see there for further descendants)
- Celtic:
  - Middle Welsh: tremyn (“to go past”)

Root

*mey-[4][5]

small, little

Alternative reconstructions

*meyh₁-[6]
See also *smey-, whence Latin mīca, Ancient Greek σμικρός (smikrós)/ μικρός (mikrós), English smicker.

Derived terms

Terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *mey- (small)

*mi-néh₁-ti ~ *mi-nh₁-énti[7]
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *mináHti
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *mináHti
    - Sanskrit: मिनाति (minā́ti, “he damages, diminishes”)
*mi-néw-ti ~ *mi-nw-énti[8][9]
- Proto-Celtic:
  - Proto-Brythonic:
    - Cornish: minow
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *mináwti
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *mináwti
    - Sanskrit: मिनोति (minóti)
- Proto-Italic: *minwō
  - Latin: minuō
- *mi-nu-yṓs ~ *mi-nw-is-és (“smaller, less”, comparative) (with *n from the verb)
  - Proto-Germanic: *minniz, *minnizô (see there for further descendants)
*mi-nṓs (“smaller, less”, comparative) (with *n from the verb)
- Proto-Italic: *minōs, *minos
  - Latin: minor, minus
Unsorted formations:
- Anatolian:
  - Hittite: 𒈠𒉌𒅔𒆪𒉿𒀭𒋼𒌍 (maninkuwantes, “short”).
- Balto-Slavic:
  - Lithuanian: menkas (“negligible”)
  - Proto-Slavic: *mьňe, *mьňьjь (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Germanic: *maiwaz (“slim, narrow”)
  - Old Norse: mjór
- Hellenic:
  - Ancient Greek: μείων (meíōn, “less, smaller”)
  - Ancient Greek: μινύθω (minúthō, “to disappear, to lessen”)
  - Ancient Greek: μίνυνθα (mínuntha, “for a little while”)
  - Ancient Greek: μόνος (mónos, “alone”)
  - Ancient Greek: μανός (manós, “sparse”)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *manā́k
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *manā́k
    - Sanskrit: मनाक् (manā́k, “a little”)
- Italic:
  - Latin: minimus (“smallest”)
- Proto-Tocharian: *menke
  - Tocharian A: mank
  - Tocharian B: menki (“lack”)
- Proto-Tocharian:
  - Tocharian B: maiwe (“small, young”)[7]

References

Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 709
Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 710
Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 710
Philippa, Marlies; Debrabandere, Frans; Quak, Arend; Schoonheim, Tanneke; van der Sijs, Nicoline (2003–2009), “minder”, in Etymologisch woordenboek van het Nederlands (in Dutch), Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press
Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 711
De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7)‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN
De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “minor, -or, -us”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 381–382
Ringe, Donald (2006) From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic (A Linguistic History of English; 1)‎, Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 139
Calin, Didier (2017), “to lessen”, in Dictionary of Indo-European Poetic and Religious Themes (Linguistique; 3), Les Cent Chemins, →ISBN, page 135: “*minéuti”

[1] Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 709

[2] Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 710

[3] Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 710

[Philippa_EWN_2009-4] Philippa, Marlies; Debrabandere, Frans; Quak, Arend; Schoonheim, Tanneke; van der Sijs, Nicoline (2003–2009), “minder”, in Etymologisch woordenboek van het Nederlands (in Dutch), Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press

[5] Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 711

[6] De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7)‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN

[De_Vaan-7] De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “minor, -or, -us”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 381–382

[Ringe_2006-8] Ringe, Donald (2006) From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic (A Linguistic History of English; 1)‎, Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 139

[9] Calin, Didier (2017), “to lessen”, in Dictionary of Indo-European Poetic and Religious Themes (Linguistique; 3), Les Cent Chemins, →ISBN, page 135: “*minéuti”