CHAPTER X

DECLENSION OF NOUNS

§ 176. Gothic nouns have two numbers—singular and plural; three genders—masculine, feminine, and neuter, as in the other Old Germanic languages, from which the gender of nouns in Gothic does not materially differ; four cases—Nominative, Accusative, Genitive, and Dative. The Vocative is mostly like the Nominative, but in the singular of some classes of nouns it regularly fell together with the Accusative, see §§ 87–8.

§ 177. In Gothic, as in the oldest periods of the other Germanic languages, nouns are divided into two great classes, according as the stem originally ended in a vowel or consonant, cp. the similar division of nouns in Sanskrit, Latin and Greek. Nouns, whose stems originally ended in a vowel, belong to the vocalic or so-called Strong Declension. Those, whose stems end in -n, belong to the Weak Declension. All other consonantal stems are in this grammar put together under the general heading of ‘Minor Declensions’.

The learner, who wishes to compare the Gothic case-endings with the corresponding forms of Latin, Greek, &c., 85will find it useful to master Chapter V before attempting to do so, because what has already been stated there will not, as a rule, be repeated in the chapters on the Accidence.

A. The Vocalic or Strong Declension.

1. The a-declension.

§ 178. The a-declension comprises masculine and neuter nouns only, and corresponds to the Latin and Greek o-declension (Gr. masc. -ος, neut. -ον, Lat. -us, -um), for which reason it is sometimes called the o-declension. The a-declension is divided into pure a-stems, ja-stems, and wa-stems.

a. Pure a-stems.

Masculines.

§ 179.

The prim. Germanic forms of dags were: Sing. nom. *đaʒaz, acc. *đaʒan, voc. *đaʒ(e), gen. *đaʒesa (with pronominal ending, § 265), dat. *đaʒai, Indg. *dhoghōĩ (cp. Gr. θεῷ, to a god), instr. *đaʒē, -ō; Pl. nom. *đaʒōz, acc. 86*đaʒanz, gen. *đaʒō̃n (cp. Gr. θεῶν, of gods), dat. *đaʒomiz. From what has been said in Chapter V on the vowels of unaccented syllables, it will be seen that all the forms of the sing. and plural, except the dat. sing. and gen. pl., are regularly developed from the corresponding prim. Germ. forms. daga is the old instrumental used for the dative. The -ē in dagē, which presupposes a prim. Germ. ending -ǣ̃n (§ 87, 1), has never been satisfactorily explained. The gen. in OE. O.Icel. daga, OS. dago, OHG. tago regularly goes back to *đaʒō̃n which would have become *dagō in Gothic, cp. gibō (§ 191).

§ 180. Like dags are declined a great many Gothic masculine nouns, e. g. áiþs (gen. áiþis), oath; asts, bough, twig; akrs, field; bagms, tree; fisks, fish; fugls, bird, fowl; hunds, dog, hound; himins, heaven; ligrs, bed, couch; máiþms, gift; maúrgins, morning; stáins, stone; sitls, seat; skalks, servant; þiudans, king; wigs, way; winds, wind; wulfs, wolf. Like hláifs is declined láufs, leaf.

Neuters.

§ 181.

The neuters only differed from the masculines in the nom. voc. sing. and nom. acc. plural, the prim. Germ. forms of which were *worđan, *worđō (§ 62). These regularly became waúrd, waúrda in Gothic.

§ 182. Like waúrd are declined a great many Gothic neuter nouns, e. g. agis (gen. agisis), fear; akran, fruit; awistr, sheepfold; barn, child; blōþ (gen. blōþis), blood; dius (gen. diuzis), wild beast; daur, door; eisarn, iron; gras (gen. grasis), grass; haúrn, horn; huzd, treasure; jēr, year; juk, yoke; kaúrn, corn; láun, pay, reward; leik, body, flesh; maúrþr, murder; riqis (gen. riqizis), darkness; silubr, silver; skip, ship; tagl, hair; tagr, tear. Like háubiþ are declined liuhaþ, light; witōþ, law.

b. ja-stems.

§ 183. Apart from the -j- it is necessary in this class of nouns to distinguish between (1) nouns which have a short stem-syllable or a long open stem-syllable and (2) those which have a long closed stem-syllable or when the stem (apart from any prefix) is of more than one syllable. In the former case the gen. sing. regularly ends in -jis and in the latter in -eis, see §§ 153, 157. This distinction was preserved in the masculines, but in the neuters the original difference was almost entirely obliterated in favour of nouns belonging to (1). The old and the new forms exist side by side in a few words, as gen. andbahteis, gawaírpeis, beside andbahtjis, gawaírþjis. Cp. § 153 note.

Masculines.

§ 184.

The prim. Germ. forms of harjis were: Sing. nom. *χarjaz, acc. *χarjan, voc. *χarj(e), gen. *χarjesa (with pronominal ending), dat. *χarjē, -ō (originally instr.); Pl. nom. *χarjōz, acc. *χarjans, gen. χarjō̃n, dat. *χarjomiz. All the forms of the sing. except the nom., and all forms of the pl. except the gen., are regularly developed from the corresponding prim. Germ. forms. *χarjaz became *haris (cp. § 155) and then the -j- in the cases where it was regular was extended to the nom. On harjē, see § 179.

The prim. Germ. forms of haírdeis were: Sing. nom. *χirđijaz, acc. *χirđijan, voc. *χirđij(e), gen. *χirđijesa, dat. *χirđijē, -ō; Pl. nom. *χirđijōz, acc. *χirđijanz, gen. *χirđijō̃n, dat. *χirđijomiz. In the nom. acc. voc. sing. the -ij- became ī after the loss of a, -(e), -an, then the ī (written ei) being protected by a consonant remained in the nom., but became shortened in the acc. and voc. (but see § 154). In the gen. sing. -ije- became -iji- and then the j disappeared between vowels; whence haírdeis. After the -ij- had become -j- in the dat. sing. and all forms of the pl. the further development of these case endings was the same as that of harjis (§ 157).

§ 185. Like harjis are declined andastaþjis, adversary; niþjis, kinsman. Like haírdeis are declined andeis, end; asneis, servant; ƕáiteis, wheat; lēkeis, physician; ragineis, counsellor; sipōneis, disciple; faúra-maþleis, ruler, prince; bōkareis, scribe; láisareis, teacher; mōtareis, toll-taker.

Neuters.

§ 186.

The nom. acc. sing. and pl. regularly go back to prim. Germ. *kunjan, *kunjō.

§ 187. Like kuni are declined badi, bed; fraþi, understanding; nati, net; wadi, pledge; gawi (gen. gáujis, § 150), region, district; hawi (dat. háuja), hay; taui (gen. tōjis, § 81), deed, work; andbahti, service; arbi, heritage; garūni, counsel; gawaírþi, peace; kunþi, knowledge; reiki, power; þiubi, theft; ufar-mēli, superscription; faírguni, mountain; fastubni, observance; waldufni, power. See § 183.

c. wa-stems.

Masculines.

§ 188.

Neuters.

§ 189.

2. The ō-declension.

§ 190. The ō-declension contains feminine nouns only, and corresponds to the Latin and Greek ā-declension, for 90which reason it is sometimes called the ā-declension. It is divided into pure ō-stems, jō-stems, and wō-stems. The wō-stems and also the jō-stems with a short radical syllable are declined exactly like the pure ō-stems. The remaining jō-stems are also declined like the pure ō-stems, except that the nom. sing. ends in -i.

a. Pure ō-stems.

§ 191.

The prim. Germ. forms of giba were: Sing. nom. *ʒeƀō; acc. *ʒeƀōn (cp. Gr. χώρᾱν, land), gen. *ʒeƀō̃z, dat. *ʒeƀai older *ʒeƀōĩ (= Indg. -āĩ, cp. Gr. θεᾷ, to a goddess); Pl. nom. acc. *ʒeƀō̃z, gen. *ʒeƀō̃n, dat. *ʒeƀōmiz, from which the corresponding Gothic forms are regularly developed.

§ 192. Like giba are declined a very large number of feminine nouns, as aƕa, river; aírþa, earth; bida, request; bōka, letter; bōta, advantage; kara, care; fēra, country, region; graba, ditch; haírda, herd; ƕeila, time; karkara, prison; láiba, remnant; mōta, custom-house; mulda, dust; nēþla, needle; rūna, mystery; razda, language; sáiwala, soul; saúrga, sorrow; stibna, voice; staua, judgment; þiuda, people; wamba, womb.

Wō-stems— bandwa, sign, token; fijaþwa (fiaþwa), hatred; frijaþwa (friaþwa), love; nidwa, rust; triggwa, covenant.

jō-stems— with a short radical syllable— brakja, strife; halja, hell; ludja, face; plapja, street; sibja, relationship; sunja, truth; wrakja, persecution. The nom. sing. had its -a either from the pure ō-stems or else it was the acc. used for the old nominative. See § 193.

b. jō-stems.

§ 193.

Excepting the nom. sing. the prim. Germ. case endings were the same as those of the pure ō-stems. The nom. sing. was *ƀandī, which regularly became bandi in Gothic.

§ 194. Like bandi are declined jō-stems which have a long stem-syllable, and those whose stems are polysyllabic, as frijōndi, friend; fráistubni, temptation; háipi, field; háiti, command; mawi (gen. máujōs, § 150), maiden; þiudangardi, kingdom; þiwi (gen. þiujōs, § 150), maid-servant; þūsundi, thousand; wasti, clothing; wundufni, wound.

3. The i-declension.

§ 195. The i-declension contains only masculine and feminine nouns, and corresponds to the Lat. and Gr. i-declension (nom. Lat. -is, Gr. -ις, acc. -im, -ιν). In the parent language the masc. and fem. i-stems were declined alike. In Gothic the nom. acc. voc. sing. regularly fell together with the a-declension (§ 179), which was the reason why the gen. and dat. sing. and probably also the gen. pl. of the masc. nouns were re-formed after the analogy of the a-declension.

a. Masculines.

§ 196.

On the pl. forms see § 198.

§ 197. Like gasts are declined arms, arm; balgs, wine-skin; barms, bosom, lap; brūþfaþs (gen. -fadis, § 173), bridegroom; gards, house; hups, hip; láists, track; mats, meat; muns, thought; saggws, song; sáiws, sea; sáuþs (gen. sáudis, § 173), sacrifice; staþs (gen. stadis, § 173), place; striks, stroke; þlaúhs, flight.

b. Feminines.

§ 198.

The prim. Germ. forms of ansts were: Sing. nom. *anstiz, acc. *anstin, voc. *ansti, gen. *anstaiz (= Indg. -eĩs, -oĩs), dat. *anstēi (originally the loc. ending); Pl. nom. *anstīz (older -ijiz = Indg. -ejes, cp. Skr. tráyas, Gr. τρεῖς from *τρέ(j)ες, three); acc. *anstinz, gen. *ansti(j)ō̃n, dat. *anstimiz, from which the Gothic forms are regularly developed except the gen. pl. which was formed direct from anst- + the gen. pl. ending -ē, see §§ 87, 179.

§ 199. Like ansts are declined a great many feminine nouns, as áihts, property; arbáiþs (gen. arbáidáis), labour; 93 asans, harvest; anabūsns (anabusns?), command; andahafts, answer; dáils, portion; dēþs (gen. dēdáis), deed; fadreins, family; fahēþs (gen. fahēdáis), joy; fralusts, loss; frawaúrhts, sin; gabaúrþs, birth; gahugds, thought; gakusts, test; gamunds, remembrance; ganists, salvation; gaqumps, assembly; garuns, market-place; gaskafts, creation; gataúrþs, destruction; haúrds, door; lists, craftiness; missadēþs (-dēds), misdeed; magaþs, maid; mahts, power; manasēþs (gen. -sēdáis), world; mikildūþs, greatness; náuþs, need; qēns, woman; saúhts, sickness; siuns, sight; slaúhts, slaughter; sōkns, search; táikns, token; þaúrfts, need; urrists, resurrection; wēns, hope; waúrts, root; wrōhs, accusation.

§ 200. In the same manner are also declined the abstract nouns formed from weak verbs of the second and third conjugation; as laþōns, invitation, inf. laþōn, to invite; mitōns, a thought, inf. mitōn, to think over; salbōns, ointment, inf. salbōn, to anoint; sunjōns, a verifying, inf. sunjōn, to verify; bauáins, dwelling, inf. bauan, to inhabit; libáins, life, inf. liban, to live; þuláins, sufferance, inf. þulan, to suffer. Abstract nouns formed from weak verbs of the first conjugation are also declined in the same manner except that the nom. and gen. plural are like those of the ō- declension (§ 191), thus láiseins, doctrine, gen. láiseináis, but nom. gen. pl. láiseinōs, láiseinō; other examples are galáubeins, faith, inf. galáubjan, to believe; dáupeins, baptism, inf. dáupjan, to baptize; naseins, salvation, inf. nasjan, to save. See § 153 note.

4. The u-declension.

§ 201. The u-declension comprises masculine, feminine and neuter nouns, and corresponds to the Lat. and Gr. 94u-declension (nom. masc. and fem. Lat. -us, Gr. -υς, acc. -um, -υν; neut. nom. acc. -ū, -u, -υ).

a. Masculines and Feminines.

§ 202.

The prim. Germ. forms of sunus were: Sing. nom. *sunuz, acc. *sunun, voc. *sunu and *sunau (= Indg. -ou, cp. Lith. sūnaũ), gen. *sunauz (= Indg. -eũs, oũs, cp. Lith. sūnaũs), dat. *sunēu (originally loc.); Pl. nom. *suniwiz (=Indg. -ewes, cp. Gr. Ionic πήχεες from *πήχεϝες, fore-arms); acc. *sununz, gen. *suniwō̃n (= Indg. -ewō̃m, cp. Gr. πήχεων from πήχεϝων), dat. *sunumiz, from which the Gothic forms are all regularly developed except the -ē in the gen. plural, see § 179. The fluctuation between sunu and sunáu in the voc. sing. may be due to the old double forms. In the nom. pl. *suniwiz became *suniuz and then sunjus (§ 150 note).

§ 203. Similarly are declined the following masculine nouns and a few others: áirus, messenger; asilus, ass; dáuþus, death; faírƕus, world; fōtus, foot; hūhrus, hunger; haírus, sword; hliftus, thief; ibnassus, evenness; kustus, test; lipus, limb; luftus, air; lustus, desire; magus, 95boy; sakkus, sackcloth; sidus, custom; skadus, shadow; skildus, shield; tunþus, tooth; þaúrnus, thorn; þiudinassus, kingdom; wiþrus, lamb; wulþus, glory; wintrus, winter.

§ 204. Besides handus also the three feminine nouns asilus, she-ass; kinnus, cheek; waddjus, wall.

b. Neuters.

§ 205. Of the neuter u-stems only a few traces are extant in Gothic. No plural forms occur.

The nom. acc. ended in the parent language in -u which regularly remained in Gothic (§ 88).

B. Weak Declension (n-stems).

§ 206. In the parent language the nom. sing. ended partly in -ēn, -ōn, and partly in -ē̃, -ō̃. The reason for this difference is unknown. The various Indg. languages generalized one or other of the two forms in prehistoric times, as in Gr. nom. ποιμήν, shepherd; ἡγεμών, leader; acc. ποιμένα, ἡγεμόνα, beside nom. Skr. rā́jā, king; Lat. homo, man; sermo, discourse; acc. rā́jānam, hominem, sermōnem. In prim. Germanic the two forms existed side by side, as in Goth. hana from -ēn, -ōn (§ 87, (1)), beside tuggō, haírtō from -ō̃ (§ 89). In Goth. the -ō̃ became 96restricted to the feminine and neuter, whereas in the West Germanic languages it became restricted to the masculine, as OE. guma, OS. gumo, OHG. gomo, man, from -ō̃, beside OE. tunge, OS. tunga, OHG. zunga, tongue; OE. ēage, OS. ōga, OHG. ouga, eye, from -ōn.

In the inflected forms the stem-endings had originally the following phases of ablaut: acc. sing. and nom. pl. -on-, loc. sing. -en-, gen. dat. sing. and acc. gen. pl. consonantal -n-, dat. and loc. pl. vocalic -n-. These distinctions were not faithfully preserved in the historic period of any of the Indg. languages. Owing to levelling out in various directions the different stem-endings were extended to cases to which they did not originally belong. Thus in Gothic the -an- in the nom. pl. hanans from prim. Germ. *xananiz was extended to the gen. The old form is still found in ab-n-ē, of fathers; aúhs-n-ē, of oxen; man-n-ē, of men. In tuggō the ō of the nom. sing. was extended to the other cases. And similarly in OE. the -an- of the acc. sing. of guma, man; tunge, tongue, was extended to the gen. and dat., so that all three cases became the same: guman, tungan.

The masc. and fem. n-stems were originally declined alike, as in Latin, Greek and Sanskrit, but already in the prehistoric period of the Germanic languages they became differentiated in some of the cases by partly generalizing one or other of the forms. Thus, as we have seen above, the nom. sing. originally ended in -ō̃ or -ōn in both genders, Gothic restricted -ō̃ to the feminine and -ōn to the masculine, but in the West Germanic languages the reverse took place. In the feminine Gothic O.Icel. OS. and OHG. levelled out the original long vowel of the nom. sing. into the oblique cases, whereas OE. had the same forms as the masculine except in the nom. sing. tunge from prim. Germanic -ōn.

From a morphological point of view the n-stems should 97be divided into -an, -jan, and -wan stems, but in Gothic as in the other Germanic languages all three classes were declined alike.

a. Masculines.

§ 207.

The prim. Germanic forms of hana were: Sing. nom. *χanēn or -ōn (cp. Gr. ποιμήν, shepherd; ἡγεμών, leader), acc. *χananun (cp. Gr. ἡγεμόνα), gen. *χanenaz or *χaniniz (cp. Gr. ποιμένος), dat. (originally loc.) *χanini (cp. Gr. ποιμένι); Pl. nom. *xananiz (cp. Gr. ἡγεμόνες), acc. *χananunz older *χannunz (cp. Gr. ἡγεμόνας, κύνας = Indg. *kun-ns (§§ 53–4), dogs), gen. *χannō̃n (cp. Goth. aúhsn-ē, OE. oxn-a, of oxen, Gr. κυν-ῶν, of dogs), dat. *χanunmiz. The Gothic cases of the sing. and the nom. pl. are regularly developed from the corresponding prim. Germanic forms. The acc. pl. hanans is the nom. used for the accusative. *xannō̃n would have become *hannō; hananē had the second -an- from the nom. pl., and the -ē is of the same unknown origin as in dagē (§ 179). The dat. pl. was formed direct from han- + am, the ending of the a-stems.

§ 208. Like hana are declined a great number of weak masculines; as aha, mind; ahma, spirit; atta, father; brunna, well, spring; blōma, flower; fana, bit of cloth; galga, cross, gallows; gajuka, companion; garda, fold; gataúra, tear, rent; guma, man; hiuhma, crowd; hliuma, hearing; liuta, hypocrite; lukarnastaþa, candlestick; magula, little boy; malma, sand; mēna, moon; nōta, stern of a ship; nuta, fisherman; skula, debtor; smakka, fig; snaga, garment; swaíhra, father-in-law; staua, judge; weiha, priest.

arbi-numja, heir; arbja, heir; baúrgja, citizen; bandja, prisoner; faúra-gaggja, governor; fiskja, fisher; fráuja, master; gasinþja, companion; gudja, priest; haúrnja, horn-blower; nēƕundja, neighbour; swiglja, piper; timrja, carpenter; wardja, guard; wilja, will. See § 153 note.

gawaúrstwa, fellow-worker; skuggwa, mirror; sparwa, sparrow.

§ 209.

manna generalized the weak stem-form man-n- which originally belonged only to the gen. dat. sing. and to all forms of the pl. except the nom. (§ 206), cp. the similar levelling in Latin in caro, flesh, acc. carnem, gen. carnis, dat. carnī, nom. pl. carnēs, beside homo, man, hominem, hominis, hominī, nom. pl. hominēs. Sing. nom. manna for *mana; acc. mannan for *manan; gen. mans from *man-n-iz, for *manins, dat. mann from *manni, for *manin; Pl. nom. mannans for *manans from *mananiz, mans from *man-n-iz, gen. mannē like aúhsnē (§ 206), dat. mannam formed like han-am (§ 207). The acc. pl. is the nom. used for the accusative. In the gen. sing. and nom. acc. pl. the -nnz was simplified to -ns after the loss of the -i- (§ 158 note).

b. Feminines.

§ 210.

The fem. n-stems were originally declined like the masculine. As has been pointed out in § 206 the -ō of the nom. tuggō was levelled out into the oblique cases just as in Lat. sermo, discourse, acc. sermōnem, gen. sermōnis, dat. sermōnī, abl. sermōne; Pl. nom. acc. sermōnēs, gen. sermōnum, dat. abl. sermōnibus. The -ō in the gen. pl. regularly goes back to prim. Germanic -ō̃n (§ 87, (1)). The dat. pl. was formed direct from tugg- + ōm, the ending of the ō-stems (§ 191).

The īn-stems had -īn- in all forms of the sing. and pl. already in prim. Germanic, as Sing. nom. *manaʒīn, acc. *manaʒīnun; gen. *manaʒīnaz, or -iz, dat. *manaʒīni; Pl. nom. *manaʒīniz, acc. *manaʒīnunz, gen. *manaʒīnō̃n, dat. *manaʒīnmiz, from which the Gothic forms, except the nom. sing. and acc. dat. plural, were regularly developed. The regular nom. sing. would be *managi (§ 87, (1)). managei was a new formation with -ei from the oblique cases. The acc. pl. manageins is the nom. used for the accusative (cp. § 207). The dat. pl. manageim was a new formation similar to hanam, tuggōm. On the origin of this declension, see Brugmann’s Grundriss, vol. II (second ed.), pp. 312–18.

§ 211. Like tuggō are declined a large number of nouns, as aglō, anguish; azgō, ash; brinnō, fever; driusō, slope; fullō, fulness; gajukō, parable; kalbō, calf; mawilō, young maiden; mizdō, reward; qinō, woman; staírnō, star; swaíhrō, mother-in-law; pāhō, clay; peiƕō, thunder.

arbjō, heiress; brunjō, breast-plate; gatimrjō, building; hēþjō, chamber; nipjō, female cousin; rapjō, account; sakjō, strife.

gatwō, street; ūhtwō, early morn; wahtwō, watch.

§ 212. Like managei are declined a large number of nouns, most of which are formed from adjectives, as agláitei, lasciviousness; áiþei, mother; áudagei, blessedness; báitrei, bitterness; balþei, boldness; baírhtei, brightness; bleiþei, mercy; diupei, depth; drugkanei, drunkenness; frōdei, understanding; gagudei, piety; garaíhtei, righteousness; háuhhaírtei, pride; hlūtrei, purity; kilþei, womb; liutei, deceit; marei, sea; mikilei, greatness; þramstei, locust; þaúrstei, thirst.

c. Neuters.

§ 213.

The neuter n-stems had originally the same endings as the masc. and fem. except in the acc. sing. and nom. acc. plural. Nom. acc. sing. haírtō from *xertō̃ (§ 206). The nom. acc. pl. had -ōnə in the Indg. parent language. This was changed in prim. Germanic into -ōnō with -ō from the neut. a-stems (§ 181). -ōnō regularly became -ōna in Gothic. The dat. pl. haírtam was formed in the same manner as hanam (§ 207).

§ 214. Like haírtō are declined the following nouns:— áugō, eye; áusō, ear; áugadaúrō, window; barnilō, little child; kaúrnō, corn; sigljō, seal; þaírkō, hole.

C. Minor Declensions.

1. Stems in -r.

§ 215.

In the parent language the words for father, mother and daughter had in the sing. nom. -tēr, acc. loc. -ter-, voc. -ter, gen. dat. -tr- (with consonantal r), Pl. nom. -ter-, acc. -tr- (with consonantal r), dat. loc. -tr- (with vocalic r), cp. § 206. The word for brother had sing. nom. -tōr or -tēr, and the word for sister -ōr (see § 147) with short -or- or loss of -o- in the other cases just as in -tēr, -ter-, -tr-. In Goth. -e-, -o- regularly became -a- before the following -r- (cp. §§ 39 note, 106). The prim. Germ. forms of brōþar were: Sing. nom. *ƀrōþōr, or -ēr (cp. Gr. Dor. φρᾱ́τωρ, φρᾱ́τηρ, member of a clan, πατήρ, father), acc. *ƀrōþarun, or -erun (cp. φρᾱ́τορα, φρᾱ́τερα), voc. *ƀrōþar, or -er (cp. φρᾱ́τορ, φρᾱ́τερ), gen. *ƀrōþraz, or -iz (cp. πατρός, Lat. patris), dat. *ƀrōþri (cp. πατρί); Pl. nom. *brōþariz, or -iriz (cp. φρᾱ́τορες, πατέρες), acc. *ƀrōþrunz, gen. *ƀrōþrō̃n (cp. πατρῶν), dat. *ƀrōþrumiz; from which all the Gothic forms are regularly developed except the nom. sing. and the nom. and gen. plural. The nom. sing. is the acc. or voc. used for the nominative. The ending -ōr, -ēr would not have become -ar in Gothic, see § 89 note. The nom. pl. was formed after the analogy of sunjus (§ 202) owing to the acc. and dat. pl. regularly falling together in both declensions. On the -ē in brōþrē see § 179.

§ 216. In the same manner are declined:— daúhtar, daughter; swistar (§ 147), sister. The word fadar, father, only occurs once, and that in the voc. or nom. sing. *mōdar, mother, does not occur at all, instead of which áiþei (§ 212) is used.

2. Stems in -nd.

§ 217. The nouns of this declension are old present participles, like Lat. ferēns, bearing, gen. ferentis, and originally had the same case endings as the other consonantal stems. But in Gothic as in the other Germanic languages they underwent various new formations. The 102nom. sing. was a new formation with -d- from the inflected forms, cp. Lat. ferēns from *ferenss older *ferents (§ 138); acc. frijōnd from *frijōndun, dat. frijōnd from *frijōndi; nom. pl. frijōnds from *frijōndiz, which was also used for the accusative. The gen. sing. and gen. dat. pl. were formed after the analogy of the a-stems (§ 179). For the declension of the present participles in Gothic, see § 239.

§ 218. In like manner are inflected the extant forms of allwaldands, the Almighty; bisitands, neighbour; dáupjands, baptizer; fráujinōnds, ruler; fijands, enemy; fraweitands, avenger; gibands, giver; mērjands, proclaimer; midumōnds, mediator; nasjands, saviour; talzjands, teacher.

3. Masculines.

§ 219. Of the masculines belonging here we have only traces, as sing. nom. mēnōþs, month, gen. mēnōþs (or mēnōþis?), dat. mēnoþ, pl. nom. acc. mēnōþs, dat. mēnōþum; sing. nom. reiks, ruler, gen. reikis, dat. reik, pl. nom. acc. reiks, gen. reikē, dat. reikam; sing. nom. weitwōds, witness, acc. weitwōd, pl. nom. weitwōds, gen. weitwōdē.

4. Feminines.

The prim. Germ. forms of baúrgs were: Sing. nom. *ƀurχs (§ 138), acc. *ƀurʒun, gen. *ƀurʒaz or -iz, dat. *ƀurʒi; Pl. nom. *ƀurʒiz, acc. *ƀurʒunz, gen. *ƀurʒō̃n, dat. *ƀurʒumiz, from which are regularly developed the gen. dat. sing. and nom. plural (but see § 169). Nom. sing. baúrgs for *baúrhs with g from the other cases. The acc. pl. is the nom. used for the accusative. The acc. sing. and gen. and dat. pl. were formed after the analogy of the i-stems (§ 198). The regular forms would have been *baúrgu, *baúrgō, *baúrgum.

§ 221. In the same manner are declined:— alhs, temple; brusts, breast; dulþs, feast; miluks, milk; mitaþs (gen. mitads), measure; nahts, night, but dat. pl. nahtam, formed after the analogy of dagam (§ 179); spaúrds, racecourse; waíhts, thing.

5. Neuters.

§ 222. Sing. nom. acc. fōn, fire, gen. funins, dat. funin. No plural forms occur.