英和和英

語源

Uncertain. An adjective in -ni- reflecting possibly Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to coagulate, dry out”) or *seh₁k- (“to arrive”), but with semantic problems. Cognates would then include Ancient Greek ἦκα (êka, “slightly, slowly, a little”) and ἥσσων (hḗssōn, “inferior, weaker, smaller”).^[1] Kroonen adds Proto-Germanic *seukaną, *suk(k)ōną (“to be ill, sick”) and Old Irish socht (“silence”), for a Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to be slow または quiet”).^[2]

Otherwise, if not related to the Ancient Greek words, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *seg- (“to stick, adhere”), with acceptable semantic shift from "sticky" to "inert". In both cases the long vowel possibly reflects an original root noun, or otherwise remains unexplained.^[1]