Wiktionary

König

See also: Koenig

German

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Etymology

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From Middle High German künec, from Old High German kuning (rarer kunig), from Proto-West Germanic *kuning, from Proto-Germanic *kuningaz.[1]

The development Old High German -ning → later -nig is regular (see Pfennig). The modern vocalism -ö- is chiefly Central and Low German; compare Middle Low German köninc, from Old Saxon kuning.

Cognate with Old Dutch kuning (whence Dutch koning), Old English cyning (whence English king), Old Norse konungr (whence e.g. Danish konge). The word was borrowed into non-Germanic languages in Proto-Germanic times: Finnish and Estonian kuningas, Russian князь (knjazʹ).

Pronunciation

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  • Audio:(file)
  • IPA(key): /ˈkøːnɪç/
  • Rhymes: -øːnɪç
  • Audio:(file)
  • IPA(key): /ˈkøːnɪk/ (southern Germany, Austria)
  • Rhymes: -øːnɪk
  • Hyphenation: Kö‧nig

Noun

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König m (strong, genitive Königes or Königs, plural Könige)

  1. king (monarch, chess, card games)

Usage notes

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  • Together with proper nouns, the genitive can be König[e]s with uninflected proper noun (e.g. Königs Wilhelm) or less common uninflected König with inflected proper noun as if the noun König were part of a name (e.g. König Wilhelms).

Declension

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Declension of König [masculine, strong]
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative ein der König die Könige
genitive eines des Königs, Königes der Könige
dative einem dem König, Könige1 den Königen
accusative einen den König die Könige

1Now rare, see notes.

Note: The long genitive form Königes lost popularity by the mid-19th century.

Hyponyms

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Derived terms

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See also

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Chess pieces in German · Schachfiguren, Schachsteine (layout · text)
           
König Dame, Königin Turm Läufer Springer, Pferd, Ross, Rössel Bauer

Proper noun

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König m or f (proper noun, surname, masculine genitive Königs or (with an article) König, feminine genitive König, plural Königs)

  1. a common surname transferred from the nickname

References

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  1. ^ "König" in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Further reading

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Saterland Frisian

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Middle Low German kȫnnich, from Old Saxon kuning. Cognates include German Low German König. Doublet of Kening.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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König m (plural [please provide])

  1. king

Synonyms

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References

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  • Marron C. Fort (2015) “Kening”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN
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