Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/wai

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 *wáy. Compare Latin vae, Lithuanian vaĩ, vái, Russian увы́ (uvý, “alas”), Middle Irish fáe, Welsh gwae (“woe”), Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬫𐬋𐬌 (vayōi), Sanskrit उवे (uvé), Persian (vây).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /wɑi̯/

Interjection

*wai

woe! alas! (expression of grief or anguish)

Related terms

*wainagaz
*wainōną
*waiwô
*waiwō
*waja-

Descendants

Note: In most descendant languages this interjection becomes additionally used as a noun with the meaning “hurt, anguish”.

Proto-West Germanic: *wai
- Old English: wā, wei, wǣ
  - Middle English: wa, wo, woo
    - English: woe
    - Scots: wa, wae
- Old Frisian: wach, *wē
  - West Frisian: wee, wea
- Old Saxon: wah, wē
  - Middle Low German: wach, wê
- Old Dutch: *wē
  - Middle Dutch: wee
    - Dutch: wee
- Old High German: wah, wa, wē
  - Middle High German: wāch, wē
    - Cimbrian: bèa
    - German: weh, Weh, wehe, Wehe
    - Yiddish: וויי (vey)
      - → English: vey
- → Vulgar Latin: *wai, *guai
  - Catalan: guai
  - Emilian: ouais (Modenese)
  - Old French: gway, gwai, guai, way, wai
    - Middle French: vé, vee (merger with or from Latin vae)
      - French: vé (dialectical, Montbéliard)
  - Italian: guai
  - Piedmontese: guaj
  - Portuguese: guai (obsolete)
  - Old Spanish: guay
    - Spanish: guay, guais (plural)
    - Ladino: guay, uay
  - Sicilian: vai
Proto-Norse: *ᚹᚨᛁ (*wai), ᚹᚨᛃᛖ- (waje-)
- Old Norse: vei, væ, ve-
  - Icelandic: vei, væ
  - Faroese: vei, veiggj
  - Norwegian: ve
  - Old Swedish: vē
    - Swedish: ve
  - Danish: ve
  - → Middle English: waȝȝ, wæi, wei, weye, wai
    - ⇒ Middle English: weylaway, wailewaie
      - English: welaway, wellaway
  - ⇒ Old Norse: væla (“to wail”)
    - → Middle English: weilen, waylen (“to wail, cry, sob”)
      - English: wail
    - Icelandic: væla
    - Elfdalian: wäla
    - ⇒ Old Norse: væl (“wail”, noun)
      - Icelandic: væl
Gothic: 𐍅𐌰𐌹 (wai)

References

Martin Findell Phonological Evidence from the Continental Runic Inscriptions (2012), citing Schneider (1980) (reconstructs *wai and notes the Gothic, ON, OE, OS and OHG descendants)

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