Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/nem-

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

Etymology 1

Possibly related to *h₁em- (“to take, to distribute”).

Root

*nem-^[1]^[2]

to distribute
to give, to take

Alternative reconstructions

*nemh₁-^[3]

Derived terms

Terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *nem- (27 c, 0 e)

*ném-e-ti (thematic root present)
- Proto-Balto-Slavic: *nemtei
  - Latvian: ņemt (“take”)
- Proto-Germanic: *nemaną (“take”) (see there for further descendants)
- Proto-Hellenic: *némō
  - Ancient Greek: νέμω (némō, “dispense, distribute”)
*nom-éh₂
- Proto-Hellenic: *nomā́
  - Ancient Greek: νομή (nomḗ, “pasture”)
*ném-es-o-s
- Proto-Italic: *nomezos
  - Latin: numerus (see there for further descendants)
*nem-es-eh₂
- Proto-Hellenic: *nemehā
  - Ancient Greek: Νεμέα (Neméa)
*nóm-o-s
- Proto-Hellenic: *nómos
  - Ancient Greek: νόμος (nómos, “custom, law”)
*nom-ó-s
- Proto-Hellenic: *nomós
  - Ancient Greek: νομός (nomós, “pasture, habitation, province”)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *námas
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan: *námas
    - Sanskrit: नम (náma, “pasture-ground”)
*ném(h₁)-tis ~ *nm̥(h₁)-téys
- Proto-Germanic: *numþiz (see there for further descendants)
- Hellenic:
  - Ancient Greek: νέμεσις (némesis), Νέμεσις (Némesis, “Nemesis, goddess of retribution”)

Unsorted formations

Albanian:
- Proto-Albanian: *namā
  - Albanian: nëmë
- Proto-Albanian: *nemska
  - Albanian: njeh
>? Proto-Celtic: *neman (< *nem-mn̥ with degemination}}
- Old Irish: neim (“poison”)
  - Irish: nimh
  - Manx: nieu
  - Scottish Gaelic: nimh
Proto-Celtic: *nemetom (see there for further descendants)
>? Proto-Celtic: *nantos (<^? *nm̥-tos) (see there for further descendants)

Etymology 2

From Etymology 1, with semantic shift "to distribute" > "to worship, sacrifice" > "to bend".^[1]

Root

*nem-^[4]^[5]^[6]

to bend

Derived terms

*ném-e-ti (thematic root present)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *námati (“to bow”) (see there for further descendants)
*nḗm-s-t ~ *ném-s-n̥t (s-aorist)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian:
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan:
    - Vedic Sanskrit: अनान् (anān)
*ne-nóm-e ~ *ne-nm-ḗr (reduplicated perfect)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian:
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan:
    - Vedic Sanskrit: नानाम (nānāma)
*nom-éye-ti (éye-causative)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian: *nāmáyati
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan:
    - Sanskrit: नमयति (namayati) (with analogical shortening of root vowel^[6])
  - Proto-Iranian:
    - Avestan: 𐬥𐬁𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬌𐬈𐬌𐬙𐬌 (nāmaiieⁱti)
*ném-os ~ *ném-es-os (see there for further descendants)

Descendants

Proto-Indo-Iranian:
- Proto-Indo-Aryan:
  - Sanskrit: नम् (nam)

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “nemus”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 405
^ Pokorny, Julius (1959), “763”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 763
^ Kümmel, Martin Joachim (2011–2024), “1.*nem- → *nemh₁-”, in Addenda und Corrigenda zu LIV²‎^[1]
^ Mallory, J. P. with Adams, D. Q. (2006), The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World (Oxford Linguistics), New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 273
^ Pokorny, Julius (1959), “764”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 764
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Rix, Helmut, editor (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben [Lexicon of Indo-European Verbs] (in German), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, →ISBN, pages 453-4

[devaan-1] 1.0 ^1.1 De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “nemus”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 405

[2] Pokorny, Julius (1959), “763”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 763

[3] Kümmel, Martin Joachim (2011–2024), “1.*nem- → *nemh₁-”, in Addenda und Corrigenda zu LIV²‎^[1]

[4] Mallory, J. P. with Adams, D. Q. (2006), The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World (Oxford Linguistics), New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 273

[5] Pokorny, Julius (1959), “764”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 764

[LIV-6] 6.0 ^6.1 Rix, Helmut, editor (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben [Lexicon of Indo-European Verbs] (in German), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, →ISBN, pages 453-4

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