2505: duel & bellum: √; duel and dual: X Oct 21, 2021
The word 'duel' may seem unassuming, but it's actually a preserved version from Archaic Latin, used before the 1st century BC. The word morphed into the Classical Latin 'bellum' (war), but the form was revived in Medieval Latin from its perceived association with 'dualis' (of two) and 'duo' but this is not accurate. The word is from the Proto-Italic *dwellom (to injure; destroy) related to other words like the Ancient Greek δαίω (daíō) meaning 'to burn' or δύη (dúē) for 'pain'. In fact, this 'du-' to 'b' transformation led to 'bis' from 'duis' meaning 'twice', further complicating that medieval folk etymology. This is also seem in Archaic Latin 'duonus' to 'bonus'.
2187: Hebrew and Arabic Dual Dec 10, 2020
The dual—a distinct plural for 2 of something—is common around many languages of the world, but there are differences in how its used. In Hebrew and Arabic, especially in the older forms of those languages, use of the dual seems compulsory, but this is not universally so. In Arabic it is simpler that any word, regardless of gender, will simply take ان (-ān) or the more modern ين (-ain) but this is being lost in some dialects. In Hebrew this is more complicated, with several different factors like gender and semantics factoring in. Often this is distinguished between the masculine plural ־ים (-im) and the dual ־יים (ayim), such as
יום / יומיים / ימים
(yōm / yomạyim / yāmīm) for 'day', ‘two days', and 'days' but often there is no written distinction, especially for masculine nouns, as with עין / עיניים (ayin / ʿēnạyim) for 'eye(s)'. Indeed, in Modern Hebrew, there is no productive use of the dual, but words for time and body parts often still retain it. Notably, in Hebrew, only nouns can have dual, so adjectives, verbs, etc. that need to correspond with a dual will usually use the standard plural.
2186: How Pluralization Can Affect Meaning: 'Oczy' vs. 'Oka' Dec 9, 2020
While pluralization may often be merely a necessary aspect of a language's grammar, sometimes it can have an impact on the semantics too. The Polish noun 'oko' means both 'eye' but also 'oil droplet' and while the plural for the first meaning is 'oczy', for the second it is 'oka'. The reason for this distinction is ostensibly due to the so-called dual number, a form of plural used specifically for things which come in pairs. That is why also even if it is more than 2 eyes, or exactly 2 oil droplets being referred to, the same plural forms are used. Indeed, while the dual is used primarily for things which are considered generally to come as pairs but in Polish and also Russian certain forms of nouns will have different forms for referring to 2, 3, or 4 of that noun, but this extension is limited to the genitive or nominative plural for Polish. Uses for the dual beyond this will be the topic tomorrow.
This post is the start of Pluralization Week, to celebrate the 6th anniversary of the blog.
