November 10, 2016, 20:47
KallehWoe is me
After our abominable election results, I wrote an email to a friend, saying, "woe is me." Then I thought I should change it to "woe is I." However, that didn't sound right, so I came to WC, but couldn't find it here. So I went to Google and found this good
explanation.. Apparently
woe is the subject and
me is the dative object, which isn't allowed (used?) in English today. It actually means
woe is to me.
November 11, 2016, 04:30
GeoffA good site, Kalleh. Thanks.
As most of us know, English is confusing to many new learners because of our having lost those cases Mr. Owen mentions. Latin and ancient Greek had five, modern Spanish has five; Russian has six. Word order is less critical in those languages, so there is an advantage to having specific cases, or so it seems to me.
November 11, 2016, 05:28
<Proofreader>I aways assumed it derived from
woe unto me.
December 31, 2016, 13:47
goofyI think it is the same "me" that is in
methinks, which is derived from
mē þyncþ "it seems to me".
January 01, 2017, 06:25
Geoffquote:
þyncþ
From which "sense" is derived?
January 02, 2017, 20:25
goofyquote:
Originally posted by Geoff:
quote:
þyncþ
From which "sense" is derived?
No, Old English
þyncan was "to seem". Its similarity with
þencan "to think" meant that both verbs became the same verb in Middle English:
think. Then the "seem" meaning disappeared - except in
methinks.
January 05, 2017, 05:55
goofy"Woe is me" is a continuation of Old English
wā is mē "woe is to me".
mē is the dative case. The German is
Weh ist mir.
The plural would be
wā is ūs "woe is to us".
The OED says:
quote:
Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 278 Heu mihi, domine, quia peccaui nimis in uita mea wa is me, drihten, forþan þe ic syngode swiðe on minum life.
"Woe is me, lord, because I sinned excessively in my life."
January 05, 2017, 20:55
KallehSo, in a sense, Proof was right that it is from woe unto me.