始まり

Beginning — Grokipedia Fact-checked by Grok 2 months ago Beginning Ara Eve Leo Sal 1x Beginning is an English noun denoting the point, time, or act at which something starts, the first part of a process, or an origin, functioning as a verbal noun derived from the verb begin . It entered the language in the late 12th century during the Middle English period, with the earliest recorded use around 1175 in forms such as begynnyng or beginnung , and evolved from Old English roots. [1] [2] The verb begin derives from Old English beginnan "to attempt, undertake," a comparatively rare compound in Old English consisting of the intensive prefix be- and ginnan , the latter of obscure etymology but often interpreted as meaning "to cut open" or "to open up," with a sense evolution from "open" to "begin" or "undertake." This form existed alongside the more common Old English onginnan , but beginnan and its derivatives became dominant in later English. Cognates of the verb appear in other Germanic languages, including German beginnen and Dutch beginnen . [3] [4] The noun beginning supplanted the earlier Old English term fruma , which meant "beginning" or "origin." This historical shift reflects changes in vocabulary during the transition from Old to Middle English, where the verbal noun from begin took over semantic roles previously held by fruma . The word's development highlights broader patterns in Germanic linguistics, including prefixation and shifts in lexical preference. [5] Etymology The verb "begin" in Old English The verb "begin" derives from the Old English beginnan , a strong verb meaning "to attempt, undertake". [3] This form was relatively rare in Old English texts compared to the more common onginnan (with the prefix on- ), which conveyed similar senses of commencing or undertaking an action. [3] [4] Beginnan was a compound verb formed by the intensive prefix be- plus the West Germanic base ginnan (from Proto-Germanic ginnaną ). [6] The prefix be- functioned to intensify or perfectivize the action expressed by the base verb, emphasizing the initiation or undertaking of an activity. [6] In the Old English verbal system, beginnan and related prefixed forms like onginnan and āginnan expressed notions of beginning or attempting, though onginnan was the dominant term in surviving texts. [4] Over time, beginnan became the form that persisted into Middle and Modern English as "begin". The noun "beginning" was later formed from this verb in Middle English. Formation of the noun "beginning" The noun beginning is a verbal noun formed in Middle English from the verb begin (appearing as biginnen , beginnen , or similar forms) through the addition of the suffix -ing , which derives from Old English beginnan . [2] [7] This construction follows the common Germanic pattern for creating verbal nouns to denote the action or result of the verb, and it first appears in the late 12th century. The earliest attested use dates to around 1175, as recorded in the Lambeth Homilies. [1] Early Middle English spellings include begynnyng , biginning , begonning , and related variants such as beginnung . The noun functions primarily to indicate the act or process of beginning, the initial stage of an event or action, or the point at which something commences. [2] [8] The base "*ginnan" and its etymology The base element *ginnan (reconstructed as West Germanic *ginnan) is of obscure etymology and is attested only in compounds. [3] Scholars propose that it originally conveyed the sense "to open" or "to open up," with a possible more literal meaning of "to cut open" as indicated by the comparative Old High German form in-ginnan , which means "to cut open, open up" in addition to "begin, undertake." [3] This base functions as the second element in the Old English compound beginnan , where it combines with the intensive prefix be- . [3] Historical development Old English predecessor "fruma" In Old English, the noun fruma (masculine, weak declension) served as the primary term for "beginning," denoting the act of starting, origin, or commencement. [2] [9] Etymologically, fruma derives from the stem frum- meaning "first" or "primitive," reflecting its connection to concepts of priority and front position, as evidenced by its relation to Old English fyrmest or formest ("foremost, earliest, first"), the superlative form underlying Modern English "foremost." [9] This link to "first" or "foremost" underscored fruma 's sense of the initial part or foremost instance of something, making it the standard Old English word for "beginning" in texts and everyday usage. [10] Fruma remained the dominant term for expressing "beginning" in Old English until later periods, when it was gradually replaced by forms derived from the verb "beginnan." [2] Middle English emergence The noun beginning emerged in Middle English during the late 12th century as a verbal noun formed from the verb begin with the suffix -ing . [2] The earliest attested use dates to around 1175 in the Lambeth Homilies . [1] Spelling variations were common, including begynnynge , biginning , beginninge , beginnunge , and similar forms. [11] [12] During this period, beginning gradually replaced the inherited Old English term fruma (appearing in Middle English as frume ) as the standard word for concepts of origin, start, or commencement. [2] Early attestations appear primarily in religious and homiletic texts, where it denoted the process of coming into existence, origin, source, or the initial point of something, such as creation or birth. [11] Representative uses include glosses equating it to Latin origo or ortus , as in later examples pairing begynnynge with "rote of a thynge" (root of a thing). [11] Modern English usage In Modern English, the noun beginning is standardized in spelling as "beginning," with the characteristic double n before the -ing suffix, a form that became fixed during the Early Modern English period through the influence of printing and emerging orthographic conventions. [13] The word has exhibited remarkable stability in its morphological structure and meaning from Early Modern English to the present, with no significant changes in form. It continues to function as a verbal noun derived from the verb begin with the -ing suffix, denoting the act or process of starting something, the point in time or space at which something starts, or the first part or earliest stage of something. [2] [1] This continuity in both spelling and semantics is evident in its consistent usage across literary, academic, and everyday contexts, where it retains the core sense of initiation or origin established centuries earlier. The noun descends from the Middle English form "begynnyng" but has remained unchanged in Modern English orthography and application. [1] Cognates German "beginnen" The German verb beginnen is a direct cognate of the English verb "begin", sharing a common origin in the West Germanic base *ginnan with the intensive prefix *be- (or *bi-). [3] In modern German, beginnen means "to begin" or "to commence", and functions similarly to its English counterpart in denoting the start of an action, process, or event. [4] The word traces back to Old High German biginnan , reflecting the parallel development from the same Germanic root seen in other related languages. [4] [14] Dutch "beginnen" The Dutch verb beginnen is a direct cognate of the English verb begin , sharing the same origin in the West Germanic base *ginnan through the prefixed form *biginnan. [15] [3] In modern Dutch , beginnen means "to begin," "to start," or "to commence," and is used in contexts closely parallel to those of English begin , such as initiating an action, process, or event. [15] This verb represents the contemporary Dutch reflex of the ancestral West Germanic verb, reflecting parallel development from the shared root alongside its English counterpart. [3] [15] References beginning, n. meanings, etymology and more Beginning - Etymology, Origin & Meaning Begin - Etymology, Origin & Meaning The murky beginning of the verb begin | OUPblog First things first beginnan - Wiktionary, the free dictionary BEGINNING Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster BEGINNING Definition & Meaning - Dictionary.com Foremost - Etymology, Origin & Meaning fruma - Anglo-Saxon dictionary biginning, beginning, biginninge, and beginninge - Middle English ... beginning - Wiktionary, the free dictionary The History of English: Spelling and Standardization ... An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language, B - Wikisource beginnen - Wiktionary, the free dictionary Table of Contents Sign in to contribute Create an account or sign in to suggest articles and edits to Grokipedia. Sign in Suggest an article Know something the world should know? Tell us what to write about. 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