Conversion. A tale of three etymologies

Abstract

Heidegger’s approach to etymology concentrates on Greek and German, and mainly on the ‘echoes’ of Greek in German. However, a true ‘hören’ to language cannot be limited to one language. This research shows that a history of the broad idea of ‘conversion’, followed from Greek onwards, through etymologies and translations, reveals an unexpected wealth of semantic features and of views on world and life.