--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, Scott Schroder
<speculum_terra_incognito@...> wrote:

>
> I has been long enough that the sequence of e-mails to which I am

responding may have been forgotten, but I'm responding nonetheless.

>
> It seems to me that the suffixing ast to the verb has akward

implications, as if it were truly passive or middle, then it would
mean "he was owned" or "he owned himself", whereas if the sword is the
patient of the action, then the verb should simply be regarded as
active. In either case, why does the suffix imply a change from "he
owned" to "he became the owner"? Both llama_nom and you indicated that
this is the case, so I'm assuming that it is accurate, but I don't
understand.


Welcome back Scott,

Something I didn't make clear in my earlier response is that 'eignask'
is actually the middle voice form corresponding to the simple verb
'eigna' "to assign, attribute something to someone; to dedicate
something to someone". 'eigna sér eitthvat' means "to declare
something to be one's own property". You can see how the idea of
"having something assigned to one" could easily develop into simply
"obtaining, getting". On the other hand, the middle voice of 'eiga'
"own, etc." appears in the idiomatic 'eigask við' "to have dealings
with; to fight [against each other]".

To elabourate on my earlier message, the "middle voice" suffix serves
various functions with different verbs. Forming passive verbs from
active verbs is just one of these functions, but there are many
others. Sometimes it adds a reflexive sense or a reciprocal sense;
with some verbs it can correspond to an active verb in English, in
which case the relationship between the unsuffixed verb and the middle
voice form may be quite idiomatic, something you would need to look up
in a dictionary even if you knew the meaning of the unsuffixed/simple
verb. In these cases, you just have to learn them as you go along.
For example, 'fara' "to go, to travel"; but 'farask' "to perish".

Often where English uses an active verb and Old Norse a middle voice
form, the verb describes an action where the agent is also the
patient, e.g. where the agent does something that affects themselves
('klæðask' "get dressed"), or the subject is more than one person
doing something to each other ('eigask við' "to have dealings with, to
fight [each other]"); on some verbs the suffix is used for mental
events: 'fælask' "to lose heart, to panic"; 'minnask' "remember" (cf.
'minna' "remind").

You can find more details here [
http://www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/lrc/eieol/norol-8-X.html#Nor08_GP39_02
].

Llama Nom