Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Etymology of macabre?
#1
It is said, this word comes etymological related to the Maccabeans.

However, I wonder if there would be an existing word m-qbr (grave) in Aramaic, which could have such an impact on Western speakers, that they imported it?

Does there indeed exist something like m-qbr which has any meaning?

Thanks.
Reply
#2
Yes...meqbar is a word and is used in Matthew 26:12 - it's translated as burial/funeral.
Though I would think it a little suspicious to claim a connection between it and Maccabee. Meqbar is simply an extension of qvar.
Reply
#3
Aaron S Wrote:Yes...meqbar is a word and is used in Matthew 26:12 - it's translated as burial/funeral.
Though I would think it a little suspicious to claim a connection between it and Maccabee. Meqbar is simply an extension of qvar.

Shlama,

@ Aaron:
the MQBR consonants are also found in the Hebrew Scriptures, as well, which supports the Aramaic and appears to give a better route of etymology for the word. i remember running across it once while reading the Hebrew Bible and the same thought of a possible "macabre" link entered my mind, as well. i dig etymologies, so i couldn't help but initially wondering.

@ Distazo:

Isaac Mozeson's THE WORD: The Dictionary That Reveals The Hebrew Source of English, actually attempts to make the link from Maccabee as well. for the most part, i've found Mozeson's reasonings to be very well done, and i certainly think he is on to something grand in his approach to all languages as stemming from Hebrew and retaining certain encodings that prove this to be so.

on page 103 of his book, the entry for MACABRE is as follows:

Quote:ROOTS: Dictionaries trace this term for "gruesome" to the historical Maccabees of Judea. They cite Aramaic maqqaba (hammer) as the source of Judas Machabaeus' surname, although the Hebrew appears in Isaiah 44:12. MAKEBHET is a hammer or mallet; the word is likely an extension of MAKAH (blow, strike - Judges 15:8) or of NKB (to pierce, bore).

personally, though, i think the "FROM THE GRAVE" inflection of the Hebrew and Aramaic works the best as a source for Macabre in the sense of it being gruesome, and that Mozeson has missed it on this one.

but if you're in to etymologies with a focus on Biblical things, you definitely need to get his book.
Reply


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)