þeowian

Old English

Alternative forms

  • þēoƿian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /θeːowiɑn/

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *þewāną (to enslave). Cognate with Old Norse þjá (to enslave), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌰𐌸𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽 (anaþiwan, to subjugate, make subservient).

Verb

þēowian

  1. to serve (as a servant, slave, or devotee)
    fram ċildhāde Gode þēowian
    to serve God since childhood
  2. to enslave, reduce to servants

Usage notes

  • In the senses of serving another person, the person being served is placed in the dative case.
    hlāforde þēowianto serve a lord
    (hlāford is declined in its dative form hlāforde)

Conjugation

Further reading

  • þēowian in Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary
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