Gämse

German

Alternative forms
  • Gams (chiefly Bavarian, but more widespread in Gamswild, Gamsbock)
  • Gemse (superseded spelling)

Etymology

From Middle High German gemeze, from Old High German gamiza (form only attested in a 13th-century manuscript). The variant Gams f is from Middle High German gamz m, f, n, from Old High German *gamuz or *gamaz (probably a masculine or neuter). These forms can be derived from Vulgar Latin *camōcius m, *camōcia f, which also underlie most of the dialectal Romance forms in Switzerland and northern Italy, probably from an extinct Alpine language (such as Raetic or Ancient Ligurian), eventually perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *kem- (“without horns”), though this is speculative. A more western form of the same word is attested in Late Latin camōx (5th century).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈɡɛmzə/
  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɛmzə

Noun

Gämse f (genitive Gämse, plural Gämsen)

  1. chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra)

Usage notes
  • The spelling Gämse has been the prescribed spelling since the German spelling reform of 1996 (the Rechtschreibreform). In the affected areas, the previous spelling (Gemse) is now less common, and may be regarded as a misspelling.

Declension
Declension of Gämse [feminine]
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative eine die Gämse die Gämsen
genitive einer der Gämse der Gämsen
dative einer der Gämse den Gämsen
accusative eine die Gämse die Gämsen

Derived terms
  • Gämsen-Binse f
  • Gemsenhorngewächs n
  • Gämsheide f

Descendants
  • → Dutch: gems
    • → West Frisian: gems
  • → Slovene: gams

References
  • Roberts, Edward A. (2014) A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Spanish Language with Families of Words based on Indo-European Roots, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN

Further reading
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