The
Proto-Germanic form of Old Norse
áss, deduced by comparison to other Germanic languages, living and dead, is
*ansuz. The plural of this Proto-Germanic word was
*ansiwiz, which by regular sound changes changes into
æsir.
The word ásuraḥ can be postulated to come from Proto-Indo-Iranian *n̩suras, where *n̩su- is the zero-grade form equivalent to the Gemanic *ansu-, both from a Proto-Indo-European root *H2ensu-. In Sanskrit, ásuḥ (PIIr *n̩sus) means "vital spirit" or "life", and is presumably related, suggesting a common meaning "spirit".
I'm looking for cognates of this root among another IE languages...
Joao SL
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