*sokjos

Meaning

1. companion

Etymology / origin

Ultimately derived from the root *sekʷ- (“to follow”), though the exact evolution of the term is unclear. Sanskrit सखि (sakhi) and Proto-Iranian *háxā likely reflect a Proto-Indo-European oi-stem noun *sokʷh₂ṓy (“follower”), which may itself derive from a noun of the shape *sokʷ-h₂. According to the linguist Anthony Yates, it is possible that that the term *sokʷh₂ṓy could have been thematicized into a form *sokʷyo-, with the loss of the laryngeal due to the effects of Pinault's Law. It is possible that this thematicized term may have yielded both Proto-Germanic *sagjaz and Proto-Italic *sokjos. De Vaan, however, suggests that it is not certain whether the Latin and Germanic forms are derived from the same *h₂-stem noun due to the absence of the laryngeal. Regardless, de Vaan still accepts the reconstruction *sokʷ(h₂)-i-o- as the immediate pre-form of the Latin term, though he suggests it cannot be conclusively determined whether it is an adjective meaning "following" or a noun meaning "companion."

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