Middle English Meaning of Chaumbir
May 24, 2011 9:41 AM Subscribe
In middle english, how is chaumbir translated? Is it a variation or inflected form of chaumber (meaning bedroom)?
Best answer: p.s. I'm happy to be corrected by anyone who knows better, but what I remember from learning to read Middle English is that the spelling is highly variable and common nouns are not inflected differently from how they are in modern English (they have plurals but not usually different genders or cases). So I'd assume that chaumbir could be translated the same as chaumber and look to the MED and the original context for clues to the best translation.
posted by Orinda at 10:11 AM on May 24, 2011
posted by Orinda at 10:11 AM on May 24, 2011
Response by poster: That's exactly what I was looking for, thank you!
The context is the original Wycliffe translation of Luke 2:7: "...for ther was no place to hym in no chaumbir."
posted by SpacemanStix at 10:17 AM on May 24, 2011
The context is the original Wycliffe translation of Luke 2:7: "...for ther was no place to hym in no chaumbir."
posted by SpacemanStix at 10:17 AM on May 24, 2011
Best answer: "Chaumber/chaumbir" sound like "chambre" is pronounced in French. Sorry I can't be more specific, my OED only says "chamber" came from the Latin "camera", but what I recall from Middle English studies goes along with Orinda's answer, and from the context a translation of "room/place to stay" seems the proper one.
For info, my French etymology dictionary gives it as coming from the Latin "camera" which, in turn, came from the Greek "kamara". The Greek meant "arch" originally but in Latin came to mean "vaulted (arched) room" and later "living room". In modern French usage, "chambre" can also mean "room" as we'd use the word with regard to a hotel room. Bedroom indeed, but also a place to stay. (When you look for a hotel room, in French you ask for a "chambre". I've seen native English speakers slip up and ask for "une pièce", which is a more generic "room" in modern French usage.)
posted by fraula at 11:01 AM on May 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
For info, my French etymology dictionary gives it as coming from the Latin "camera" which, in turn, came from the Greek "kamara". The Greek meant "arch" originally but in Latin came to mean "vaulted (arched) room" and later "living room". In modern French usage, "chambre" can also mean "room" as we'd use the word with regard to a hotel room. Bedroom indeed, but also a place to stay. (When you look for a hotel room, in French you ask for a "chambre". I've seen native English speakers slip up and ask for "une pièce", which is a more generic "room" in modern French usage.)
posted by fraula at 11:01 AM on May 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Orinda is correct. ME spelling is non-standard. People spelled words the way they said them. Considering all the dialect variation, it is a miracle my spell-checker survived my undergrad degree.
posted by QIbHom at 12:29 PM on May 24, 2011
posted by QIbHom at 12:29 PM on May 24, 2011
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posted by Orinda at 9:53 AM on May 24, 2011