CHAPTER IV.
AFFINITIES OF THE ENGLISH WITH THE LANGUAGES OF GERMANY AND SCANDINAVIA.
[§ 65]. The last chapter has limited the Anglo-Saxon area to the northern part of the Saxon area in general. Further details, however, upon this point, may stand over until the general affinities of the English language have been considered.
[§ 66]. Over and above those languages of Germany and Holland which were akin to the dialects of the Angles and the Saxons, cognate languages were spoken in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and the Feroe isles, i.e., in Scandinavia.
[§ 67]. The general collective designation for the Germanic tongues of Germany and Holland, and for the Scandinavian languages of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and the Feroe Isles, is taken from the name of those German tribes who, during the decline of the Roman Empire, were best known to the Romans as the Goths; the term Gothic for the Scandinavian and Germanic languages, collectively, being both current and convenient.
[§ 68]. Of this great stock of languages the Scandinavian is one branch; the Germanic, called also Teutonic, another.
[§ 69]. The Scandinavian branch of the Gothic stock comprehends, 1. The dialects of Scandinavia Proper, i.e., of Norway and Sweden; 2. of the Danish isles and Jutland; 3. of Iceland; 4. of the Feroe Isles. On the side of Lapland the languages of this branch come in contact with the Laplandic and Finlandic; whilst in Sleswick they are bounded by the Low German.
SPECIMENS.
Icelandic (Fareyïnga-Saga—Ed. Mohnike).
Ok nú er þat eitthvert sinn um sumarit, at Sigmundr mælti til þóris: "Hvat mun verða, þo at við farim í skóg þenna, er hèr er norðr frá garði?" þórir svarar: "á því er mèr eingi forvitni," segir hann. "Ekki er mèr svâ gefit," segir Sigmundr, "ok þángat skal ek fara." "þú munt ráða hljóta," segir þûrir, "en brjótum við þa boðorð fóstra míns." Nu fóru þeir, ok hafði Sigmundr viðaröxi eina i hendi sèr; koma i skóginn, ok í rjôðr eitt fagurt; ok er þeir hafa þar eigi leingi verit, þá heyra þeir björn mikinn harðla ok grimligan. þat var viðbjörn mikill, úlfgrár at lit. þeir hlaupa nu aptra á stiginn þan, er þeir hölðu þángat farit; stigrinn var mjór ok þraurigr, ok hleypr þórir fyrir, en Sigmundr síðar. Dýrit bleypr nú eptir þeim á stiginn, ok verðr því þraungr stigrinn, ok brotna eikrnar fyrir þvi. Sigmundr snyr þá skjótt út af stignum millum trjánna, ok biðr þar til er dyrit kemr jafn-fram honum. þa höggr hann jafnt meðal hlusta á dŷrinu með tveim höndum, svâ at exin sökkr. En dŷrit fellr áfram, ok er dautt.
Feroic.
Nú vär so til ajna Ferina um Summari, at Sigmundur snakkaji so vi Towra: "Kvat man bagga, towat vìd färin uj henda Skowin, uj èr hèr noran-firi Gärin?" Towrur svärar, "Ikkji hävi e Hu at forvitnast ettir tuj," sìir han. "Ikkji eri e so sintur," sìir Sigmundur, "og häar skäl e fara." "Tù fert tå at råa," sìir Towrur, "men tå browtum vid Forbo Fostirfäjir mujns." Nù fowru tajr, og Sigmundur heji ajna öksi til Brennuvì uj Hondini; tajr koma in uj Skowin, og å ajt väkurt rudda Plos men ikkji häva tajr veri här lájngji, firin tajr hojra kvödtt Brak uj Skownun, og bråt ettir sujgja tajr ajna egvulia stowra Bjödn og gruiska. Tä vä ajn stowr Skowbjödn grågulmut å Litinun. Tair lejpa nù attir å Råsina, sum tajr höddu gingji ettir; Råsin vär mjåv og trong; Towrur lejpur undan, og Sigmundur attanå. Djowri leipur nù ettir tajmum å Råsini; og nù verur Råsin trong kjå tuj, so at Ajkjinar brotnavu frå tuj. Sigmundur snujur tå kvikliani útäf Råsini inimidlum Trjini, og bujar här til Djowri kjemur abajnt han. Tå höggur han bajnt uj Ojrnalystri å Djowrinum vi båvun Hondun, so at öxin sökkur in, og Djowri dettir bajnt framettir, og er standejt.
Swedish.
Och nu var det engång on sommaren, som Sigmund sade till Thorer: "Hvad månde väl deraf warda, om vi åter gå ut i skogen, som ligger der norr on gården?" "Det är jag alldeles icke nyfiken att veta," svarade Thor. "Icke går det så med mig," sade Sigmund, "och ditret mäste jag." "Du kommer då att råda," sade Thor, "men dermed öfverträda vi vår Fosterfaders bud." De gingo nu åstad, och Sigmund bade en vedyxa i handen; de kommo in i skogen, och strat derpå fingo de se en ganska stor och vildsinnt björn, en dråpelig skogsbjörn, varg-grå till färgen. De sprungo då tillbaka på samma stig som de hade kommit dit. Stigen var smal och trång; och Thorer sprang fråmst, men Sigmund efterst. Djuret lopp nu efter dem på stigen, och stigen blef trång för detsamma, så att träden sönderbrötos i dess lopp. Sigmund vände då kurtigt retaf från stigen, och ställde sig mellan träden, samt stod der, tills djuret kom fram midt för honom. Då fattade han yxan med begge händerna, och högg midt emellan öronen på djuret, så att yxan gick in, och djuret störtade framåt, och dog på stället.
Danish.
Og nu var det engang om Sommeren, at Sigmund sagde til Thorer: "Hvad mon der vel kan flyde af, om vi end gaae hen i den Skov, som ligger her nordenfor Gaarden?" "Det er jeg ikken nysgjerrig efter at vide," svarede Thorer. "Ei gaar det mig saa," sagde Sigmund, "og derud maa jeg." "Du kommer da til at raade," sagde Thorer, "men da overtræde, vi vor Fosterfaders Bud." De gik nu, og Sigmund havde en Vedöxe i Haanden; de kom ind i Skoven, og strax derpaa saae de en meget stor og grum Björn, en drabelig Skovejörn, ulvegraa af Farve. De löb da tilbage ad den samme Sti, ad hvilken de vare komne derhen. Stien var smal og trang; og Thorer löb forrest, men Sigmund bagerst. Dyret löb nu efter dem paa Stien, og Stien blev trang for det, og Træerne brödes i dets. Löb Sigmund dreiede da nu hurtig ud af Stien, og stillede sig imellem Træerne, og stod der indtil Dyret kom frem lige for ham. Da fattede han öxen med begge Hænder, og hug lige imellem örerne paa Dyret, saa at öxen sank i, og Dyret styrtede fremad, og var dödt paa Stedet.
English.
And now is it a time about the summer, that Sigmund spake to Thorir: "What would become, even if we two go into the wood (shaw), which here is north from the house?" Thorir answers, "Thereto there is to me no curiosity," says he. "So is it not with me," says Sigmund, "and thither shall I go." "Thou mayst counsel," says Thorir, "but we two break the bidding-word of foster-father mine." Now go they, and Sigmund had a wood-axe in his hands; they come into the wood, and into a fair place; and as they had not been there long, they hear a bear, big, fierce, and grim. It was a wood-bear, big, wolf-grey in hue. They run (leap) now back (after) to the path, by which they had gone thither. The path was narrow and strait; and Thorir runs first, and Sigmund after. The beast runs now after them on the path, and the path becomes strait, and broken oaks before it. Sigmund turns then short out of the path among the trees, and bides there till the beast comes even with him. Then cuts he even in between the ears of the beast with his two hands, so that the axe sinks, and the beast falls forward, and is dead.
[§ 70]. The Teutonic branch falls into three divisions:—
1. The Mœso-Gothic.
2. The High Germanic.
3. The Low Germanic.
[§ 71]. It is in the Mœso-Gothic that the most ancient specimen of any Gothic tongue has been preserved. It is also the Mœso-Gothic that was spoken by the conquerors of ancient Rome; by the subjects of Hermanic, Alaric, Theodoric, Genseric (?), Euric, Athanaric, and Totila.
This history of this language, and the meaning of the term by which it is designated, is best explained by the following passages:—
a. A.D. 482. "Trocondo et Severino consulibus—Theodoricus cognomento Valamer utramque Macedoniam, Thessaliamque depopulatus est, Larissam quoque metropolim depredatus, Fausto solo consule (A.D. 485)—Idem Theodoricus rex Gothorum Zenonis Augusti munificentia pene pacatus, magisterque præsentis militiæ factus, consul quoque designatus, creditam sibi Ripensis Daciæ partem Mœsiæque inferioris, cum suis satellitibus pro tempore tenuit."—Marcellini Comitis Chronicon, D.N.
b. "Frederichus ad Theodoricum regem, qui tunc apud Novam Civitatem provinciæ Mœsiæ morabatur, profectus est."—Vita S. Severini, D.N.
c. "Zeno misit ad Civitatem Novam, in quâ erat Theodoricus dux Gothorum, filius Valameris, et eum invitavit in solatium sibi adversus Basiliscum."—Anon. Valesii, p. 663, D.N.
d. Civitas Nova is Nicopolis on the Danube; and the nation thus spoken of is the Gothic nation in the time of Zeno. At this time they are settled in the Lower Mœsia, or Bulgaria.
How they got here from the northern side of the Danube we find in the history of the reign of Valens. When pressed by intestine wars, and by the movements of the Huns, they were assisted by that emperor, and settled in the parts in question.
Furthermore, they were converted to Christianity; and the Bible was translated into their language by their Bishop Ulphilas.
Fragments of this translation, chiefly from the Gospels, have come down to the present time; and the Bible translation of the Arian Bishop Ulphilas, in the language of the Goths of Mœsia, during the reign of Valens, exhibits the earliest sample of any Gothic tongue.
[§ 72]. How Gothic tribes reached the Lower Danube is a point upon which there is a variety of opinion. The following facts, however, may serve as the basis of our reasoning.
A.D. 249-251—The Goths are found about equidistant from the Euxine Sea, and the eastern portion of the range of Mount Hæmus, in the Lower Mœsia, and at Marcianopolis. Here they gain a great battle against the Romans, in which the Emperor Decius is killed.
His successor, Gallus, purchases a peace.
Valerian defends himself against them.
During the reign of Gallienus they appear as maritime warriors, and ravage Asia Minor, Greece, and Illyria.
A.D. 269—Are conquered at Naissus, on the western boundary of Mœsia Superior by Claudius.
A.D. 282—Are defeated by Carus.
A.D. 321—Ravage Mœsia (Inferior?) and Thrace.
A.D. 336—Attacked by Constantine in Dacia—north of the Danube.
A.D. 373—In the reign of Valens (as already stated), they were admitted to settle within the limits of the empire.
[§ 73]. Now, although all this explains, how a Gothic language was spoken in Bulgaria, and how remnants of it have been preserved until the nineteenth century, the manner in which the tribe who spoke it reached Marcianopolis, so as to conquer the Emperor Decius, in A.D. 249, is unexplained.
Concerning this there are three opinions—
A. The Baltic doctrine. According to this the Goths migrated from the Baltic to the Mæotis, from the Mæotis to the Euxine, and from the Euxine to the Danube, along which river they moved from east to west.
B. The Getic doctrine.—Here the Goths are made out to be the aborigines of the Lower Danube, of Dacia, Mœsia, and even Thrace; in which case their movement was, also, from east to west.
C. The German doctrine.—Here the migration is from west to east, along the course of the Danube, from some part of south-eastern Germany, as its starting-point, to Asia Minor as its extreme point, and to Bulgaria (Mœsia Inferior) as its point of settlement.
[§ 74]. Respecting the first of these views the most that can be said in its favour is, that it is laid down by Jornandes, who wrote in the fifth century, and founded his history upon the earlier writings of Ablavius and Dexippus, Gothic historians, who, in their turn took their account from the old legends of the Goths themselves—in priscis eorum carminibus, pæne historico ritu. On the other hand, the evidence is, at best, traditional, the fact improbable, and the likelihood of some such genealogy being concocted after the relationship between the Goths of the Euxine, and Germans of the Baltic had been ascertained exceedingly great.
[§ 75]. The second is supported by no less an authority than Grimm, in his latest work, the History of the German Language;—and the fact of so learned and comprehensive an investigator having admitted it, is, in the mind of the present writer, the only circumstance in its favour. Over and above the arguments that may be founded on a fact which will soon be noticed, the chief reasons are deduced from a list of Dacian or Getic plants in Dioscorides, which are considered to bear names significant in the German. Whether or not, the details of this line of criticism will satisfy the reader who refers to them, it is certain that they are not likely to take a more cogent form than they take in the hands of the Deutsche Grammatik.
[§ 76]. The third opinion is the likeliest; and if it were not for a single difficulty would, probably, never have been demurred to. The fact in question is the similarity between the words Getæ and Gothi.
The fact that a tribe called G-O-T-H-I should, when they first peopled the Mœsogothic country, have hit upon the
country of a people with a name so like their own as G-E-T-Æ, by mere accident, is strange. English or American colonies might be sent to some thousand places before one would be found with a name so like that of the mother-country as Get is to Got. The chances, therefore, are that the similarity of name is not accidental, but that there is some historical, ethnological, or geographical grounds to account for it. Grimm's view has been noticed. He recognises the difficulty, and accounts for it by making the Goths indigenous to the land of Getæ.
To a writer who (at one and the same time) finds difficulty in believing that this similarity is accidental and is dissatisfied with Grimm's reasoning, there seems to be no other alternative but to consider that the Goths of the Lower Danube had no existence at all in Germany under that name, that they left their country under a different[[5]] one, and that they took the one by which they were known to the Romans (and through them to us), on reaching the land of the Getæ—as, in England, the Saxons of Essex and Wessex did not (since they brought their name with them), but as the East and West Kent-ings[[6]] did.
This doctrine, of course, falls to the ground directly it can be shown that the Goths of Mœsia were either called Goths in Germany, or any where else, anterior to their settlement in the Geta-land.
Be this, however, as it may, the first division of the Teutonic branch of languages is the Mœso-Gothic of the Goths of the Lower Danube, in the fourth century, as preserved in the translation of Ulphilas, and in other less important fragments.
SPECIMEN.
Luke i. 46-56.
Jah quaþ Mariam. Mikileid saivala meina Fan, jah svegneid ahma meins du Goþa nasjand meinamma. Unte insahu du hnaivenai þiujos seinaizos: sai allis fram himma nu audagjand mik alla kunja. Unte gatavida mis mikilein sa mahteiga, jah veih namo is. Jah armahairtei is in aldins aldê þaim ogandam ina. Gatavida svinthein in arma seinamma; distahida mikilþuhtans gahugdai hairtins seinis; gadrausida mahteigans af stolam, jah ushauhida gahnaividans; gredigans gasôþida þiuþe, jah gabignandans insandida lausans; hleibida Israela þiumagu seinamma, gamundans armahairteins, sva sve rodida du attam unsaraim Abrahaima jah fraiv is und aiv.
[§ 77]. The Old High German, called also Francic and Alemannic, was spoken in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries, in Suabia, Bavaria, and Franconia. It is in the Old High German that the Krist of Otfrid, the Psalms of Notker, the Canticle of Willeram, the Glosses of Kero, the Vita Annonis, &c., are composed.
SPECIMEN.
Krist, i. 12. (Edit. Graff.)
Tho uuarun thar in lante hirta haltente;
Thes fehes datun uuarta uuidar fianta.
Zi ín quam boto sconi, engil scinenti;
Joh uuurtun sie inliuhte fon himilisgen liohte.
Forahtun sie in tho gahun so sinan anasahun;
Joh hintarquamun harto thes Gotes boten uuorto.
Sprah ther Gotes boto sar. "Ih scal íú sagen uuuntar.
Ju scal sin fon Gote heil; nales forahta nihein.
Ih scal iu sagen imbot, gibot ther himilisgo Got;
Ouh nist ther er gihorti so fronisg arunti.
Thes uuirdit uuorolt sinu zi euuidon blidu,
Joh al giscaft thiu in uuorolti thesa erdun ist ouh dretenti
Niuuui boran habet thiz lant then himilisgon Heilant;
The ist Druhtin Krist guater fon iungeru muater.
In Bethleem thiue kuninga thie uuarun alle thanana,
Fon in uuard ouh giboran iu sin muater magad sconu.
Sagen ih íú, guate man, uuio ir nan sculut findan,
Zeichen ouh gizami thuruh thaz seltsani.
Zi theru burgi faret hinana, ir findet, so ih íú sageta,
Kind niuuui boranaz in kripphun gilegitaz.
Tho quam unz er zin tho sprah engilo heriscaf,
Himilisgu menigi, sus alle singenti—
In himilriches hohi si Gote guallichi;
Si in erdu fridu ouh allen thie fol sin guates uuillen
The Same, in English.
Then there was in the land herdsmen feeding:
Of their cattle they made watch against foes.
To them came a messenger fair, an angel shining,
And they became lit with heavenly light.
They feared, suddenly as on him they looked;
And followed much the words of God's messenger:
Spake there God's messenger strait, "I shall to you say wonders.
To you shall there be from God health; fear nothing at all.
I shall to you say a message, the bidding of the heavenly God:
Also there is none who has heard so glad an errand.
Therefore becomes his world for ever blythe,
And all creatures that in the world are treading this earth.
Newly borne has this land the heavenly Savior,
Who is the Lord Christ, good, from a young mother.
In Bethleem, of the kings they were all thence—
From them was also born his mother, a maid fair.
I say to you, good men, how ye him shall find,
A sign and token, through this wonder.
To your burgh fare hence, ye find, so as I to you said,
A child, new born, in a crib lying."
Then came, while he to them spake, of angels an host,
A heavenly retinue, thus all singing:
"In the heavenly kingdom's highth be to God glory;
Be on earth peace also to all who are full of God's will."
The Middle High German ranges from the thirteenth Century to the Reformation.
[§ 78]. The Low Germanic Division, to which the Anglo-Saxon belongs, is currently said to comprise six languages, or rather four languages in different stages.
I. II.—The Anglo-Saxon and Modern English.
III.—The Old Saxon.
IV. V.—The Old Frisian and Modern Dutch.
VI.—The Platt-Deutsch, or Low German.
[§ 79]. The Frisian and Dutch.—It is a current statement that the Old Frisian bears the same relation to the Modern Dutch of Holland that the Anglo-Saxon does to the English.
The truer view of the question is as follows:—
1. That a single language, spoken in two dialects, was originally common to both Holland and Friesland.
2. That from the northern of these dialects we have the Modern Frisian of Friesland.
3. From the southern, the Modern Dutch of Holland.
The reason for this refinement is as follows:—
The Modern Dutch has certain grammatical forms older than those of the Old Frisian; e.g., the Dutch infinitives and the Dutch weak substantives, in their oblique cases, end in -en; those of the Old Frisian in -a: the form in -en being the older.
[§ 80]. The true Frisian is spoken in few and isolated localities. There is—
1. The Frisian of the Dutch state called Friesland.
2. The Frisian of the parish of Saterland, in Westphalia.
3. The Frisian of Heligoland.
4. The North Frisian, spoken in a few villages of Sleswick. One of the characters of the North Frisian is the possession of a Dual Number.
[§ 81]. In respect to its stages, we have the Old Frisian of the Asega-bog, the Middle Frisian of Gysbert Japicx, and the Modern Frisian of the present Frieslanders, Westphalians, and Heligolanders.
Asega-bog, i. 3. p. 13, 14. (Ed. Wiarda.)
Thet is thiu thredde liodkest and thes Kynig Kerles ieft, theter allera monna ek ana sina eyna gode besitte umberavat. Hit ne se thet ma hine urwinne mith tele and mith rethe and mith riuchta thingate, sa hebbere alsam sin Asega dema and dele to lioda londriuchte. Ther ne hach nen Asega nenne dom to delande hit ne se thet hi to fara tha Keysere fon Rume esweren hebbe and thet hi fon da liodon ekeren se. Sa hoch hi thenne to demande and to delande tha fiande alsare friounde, thruch des ethes willa, ther hi to fara tha Keysere fon Rume esweren heth, tho demande and to delande widuon and weson, waluberon and alle werlosa liodon, like to helpande and sine threa knilinge. Alsa thi Asega nimth tha unriuchta mida and tha urlouada panninga, and ma hini urtinga mi mith twam sine juenethon an thes Kyninges bonne, sa ne hoch hi nenne dom mar to delande, truch thet thi Asega thi biteknath thene prestere, hwande hia send siande and hia skilun wesa agon there heliga Kerstenede, hia skilun helpa alle tham ther hiam seluon nauwet helpa ne muge.
The Same, in English.
That is the third determination and concession of King Charles, that of all men each one possess his own goods (house?) unrobbed. It may not be that any man overcome him with charge (tales), and with summons (rede), and with legal action. So let him hold as his Asega (judge) dooms and deals according to the land-right of the people. There shall no Asega deal a doom unless it be that before the Cæsar of Rome he shall have sworn, and that he shall have been by the people chosen. He has then to doom and deal to foes as to friends, through the force (will) of the oath which he before the Cæsar of Rome has sworn, to doom and to deal to widows and orphans, to wayfarers and all defenceless people, to help them as his own kind in the third degree. If the Asega take an illegal reward, or pledged money, and a man convict him before two of his colleagues in the King's Court, he has no more to doom, since it is the Asega that betokens the priest, and they are seeing, and they should be the eyes of the Holy Christendom, they should help all those who may nought help themselves.
[§ 82]. The Low German and Platt-Deutsch.—The words Low German are not only lax in their application, but they are equivocal; since the term has two meanings, a general meaning when it signifies a division of the Germanic languages, comprising English, Dutch, Anglo-Saxon, Old Saxon, and Frisian, and a limited one when it means the particular dialects of the Ems, the Weser, and the Elbe. To avoid this the dialects in question will be henceforth called by their continental name of Platt-Deutsch; which although foreign, is convenient.
[§ 83]. The points of likeness and difference between two languages belonging to different branches of the same Gothic stock may be partially collected from the following comparison between certain Icelandic, Norse or Scandinavian, and certain Anglo-Saxon or Germanic inflections.
Declension of substantives ending with a vowel.
Declension of Substantives ending with a Consonant.
[§ 84]. The most characteristic difference between the Saxon and Icelandic lies in the peculiar position of the definite article in the latter language. In Saxon, the article corresponding with the modern word the, is þæt, se, seó, for the neuter, masculine, and feminine genders respectively; and these words, regularly declined, are prefixed to the words with which they agree, just as is the case with the English and with the majority of languages. In Icelandic, however, the article, instead of preceding, follows its noun, with which it coalesces, having previously suffered a change in form. The Icelandic article corresponding to þæt, se, seó, is hitt (N.), hinn (M.), hin (F.): from this the h is ejected, so that, instead of the regular inflection (a), we have the forms (b).
whence, as an affix, in composition,
| Neut. | Masc. | Fem. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Augat | Boginn | Túngan. |
| Acc. | Augat | Boginn | Túnguna. | |
| Dat. | Auganu | Boganum | Túngunni. | |
| Gen. | Augans | Bogans | Túngunnar. | |
| Plur. | Nom. | Augun | Bogarnir | Túngurnar. |
| Acc. | Augun | Bogana | Túngurnar. | |
| Dat. | Augunum | Bogunum | Túngunum. | |
| Gen. | Augnanna | Boganna | Túngnanna. |
[§ 85]. In the Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish this peculiarity in the position of the definite article is preserved. Its origin, however, is concealed; and an accidental identity with the indefinite article has led to false notions respecting its nature. In the languages in point the i is changed into e, so that what in Icelandic is it and in, is in Danish et and en. En, however, as a separate word, is the numeral one, and also the indefinite article a; whilst in the neuter gender it is et—en Sol, a sun; et Bord, a table: Solen, the sun; Bordet, the table. From modern forms like those just quoted, it has been imagined that the definite is merely the indefinite article transposed. This it is not.
Reference will be made to this passage on more occasions than one, to show how words originally distinct may, in the process of time, take the appearance of being identical. To apply an expression of Mr. Cobbett's, en=a, and -en=the, are the same combination of letters, but not the same word.
DECLENSION OF ADJECTIVES.
| Saxon. | Icelandic. | ||||||
| Definite.[[7]] | Definite.[[7]] | ||||||
| Singular. | Singular. | ||||||
| Neut. | Masc. | Fem. | Neut. | Masc. | Fem. | ||
| Nom. | Góde | Góda | Góde. | Nom. | Haga | Hagi | Haga. |
| Acc. | Góde | Gódan | Gódan. | Acc. | Haga | Haga | Högu. |
| Abl. | Gódan | Gódan | Gódan. | Abl. | Haga | Haga | Högu. |
| Dat. | Gódan | Gódan | Gódan. | Dat. | Haga | Haga | Högu. |
| Gen. | Gódan | Gódan | Gódan. | Gen. | Haga | Haga | Högu. |
| Plural. | Högu is the Plural form for all the Cases and all the Genders. | ||||||
| Nom. | Gódan | Gódan | Gódan. | ||||
| Acc. | Gódan | Gódan | Gódan. | ||||
| Abl. | Gódum | Gódum | Gódum. | ||||
| Dat. | Gódum | Gódum | Gódum. | ||||
| Gen. | Gódena | Gódena | Gódena. | ||||
| Indefinite. | Indefinite. | ||||||
| Singular. | Singular. | ||||||
| Neut. | Masc. | Fem. | Neut. | Masc. | Fem. | ||
| Nom. | Gód | Gód | Gód. | Nom. | Hagt | Hagr | Hög. |
| Acc. | Gód | Gódne | Góde. | Acc. | Hagt | Hagan | Hög. |
| Abl. | Góde | Góde | Gódre. | Abl. | Högu | Högum | Hagri. |
| Dat. | Gódum | Gódum | Gódre. | Dat. | Högu | Högum | Hagri. |
| Gen. | Gódes | Gódes | Gódre. | Gen. | Hags | Hags | Hagrar. |
| Plural. | Plural. | ||||||
| Nom. | Góde | Góde | Góde. | Nom. | Hög | Hagir | Hagar. |
| Acc. | Góde | Góde | Góde. | Acc. | Hög | Haga | Hagar. |
| Abl. | Gódum | Gódum | Gódum. | Abl. | Högum | Högum | Högum. |
| Dat. | Gódum | Gódum | Gódum. | Dat. | Högum | Högum | Högum. |
| Gen. | Gódra | Gódra | Gódra. | Gen. | Hagra | Hagra | Hagra. |
[§ 86]. Observe in the Icelandic forms the absence of the termination -an. Observe also the neuter termination -t, as hagr, hagt. Throughout the modern forms of the Icelandic (viz. the Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian languages) this termination is still preserved: e.g., en god Hest, a good horse; et godt Hjært, a good heart; en skön Pige, a beautiful damsel; et skarpt Svœrd, a sharp sword.
[§ 87]. Amongst the pronouns the following differences present themselves. The Saxon forms are, for the pronoun of the second person, þu (thou), git (ye two), ge (ye); whilst in Icelandic they are þu, þið, per, respectively. Again, in Saxon there is no reflective pronoun corresponding with the Latin se. In Icelandic we have sik, sér, sin, corresponding to the Latin se, sibi, suus. Besides this, the word sin is declined, so that like the Latin suus it becomes adjectival.
| Sing. | Nom. | Sitt | Sinn | Sín. |
| Acc. | Sitt | Sinn | Sína. | |
| Dat. | Sínu | Sínum | Sinni. | |
| Gen. | Sins | Sins | Sinnar. | |
| Plur. | Nom. | Sín | Sínir | Sínar. |
| Acc. | Sín | Sína | Sínar. | |
| Dat. | Sínum | Sínum | Sínum. | |
| Gen. | Sinna | Sinna | Sinna. |
In Saxon there is of course no such an adjectival form. There the Possessives of the Third Person correspond not with the Latin suus, sua, suum; but with the Latin ejus and eorum. The English words his and her are genitive cases, not adjectives.
Further remarks upon the presence of the Reflective Pronoun sik in Icelandic, and its absence in Saxon, will appear in the sequel.
THE NUMERALS.
| Saxon. | Icelandic. | |
| 1. | Án | Eitt, einn, ein. |
| 2. | Twá | Tvö, tveir. |
| 3. | Þreó | Þrju, þrir. |
| 4. | Feower | Fjögur, fjórir. |
| 5. | Fíf | Fimm. |
| 6. | Six | Sex. |
| 7. | Seofon | Sjö. |
| 8. | Eahta | Átta. |
| 9. | Nigon | Niu. |
| 10. | Tyn | Tiu. |
Of the Icelandic verbs the infinitives end in -a; as kalla, to call; elska, to love; whereas the Saxon termination is -an; as lufian, to love; wyrcan, to work.
[§ 88]. The persons are as follows:—
| Saxon. | Icelandic. | ||
| Pres. | Sing. | 1. Bærne | Brenni. |
| 2. Bærnst | Brennir. | ||
| 3. Bærnð | Brennir. | ||
| Plur. | 1. Bærnað | Brennum. | |
| 2. Bærnað | Brennið. | ||
| 3. Bærnað | Brenna. |
[§ 89]. The characteristic, however, of the Icelandic (indeed, of all the Scandinavian languages) is the possession of a passive form, or a passive voice, ending in -st:—Ek, þu, hann brennist=I, thou, he is burnt; Ver brennumst=We are burnt; þér brennizt=ye are burnt; þeir brennast=they are burnt. Past tense, Ek, þu, hann brendist; ver brendumst, þér brenduzt, þeir brendust. Imperat.: brenstu=be thou burnt. Infinit.: brennast=to be burnt.
In the modern Danish and Swedish, the passive is still preserved, but without the final t. In the older stages of Icelandic, on the other hand, the termination was not -st but -sc; which -sc grew out of the reflective pronoun sik. With these phenomena the Scandinavian languages give us the evolution and development of a passive voice; wherein we have the following series of changes:—1st. the reflective pronoun coalesces with the verb, whilst the sense changes from that of a reflective to that of a middle verb; 2nd. the c changes to t, whilst the middle sense passes into a passive one; 3rd. t is dropped from the end of the word, and the expression that was once reflective then becomes strictly passive.
Now the Saxons have no passive voice at all. That they should have one originating like that of the Scandinavians was impossible. Having no reflective pronoun, they had nothing to evolve it from.
[§ 90]. Recapitulating, we find that the characteristic differences of the greatest importance between the Icelandic and Saxon are three in number:—
1st. The peculiar nature of the definite article.
2nd. The neuter form of the adjectives in -t.
3rd. The existence of a passive voice in -sc, -st, or -s.
[§ 91]. In the previous comparison the substantives were divided as follows:—1st. into those ending with a vowel; 2ndly, into those ending with a consonant. In respect to the substantives ending with a vowel (eáge, nama, tunge), it may have been observed that their cases were in A. S. almost
exclusively formed in -n, as eágan, tungan, &c.; whilst words like skip and smið had, throughout their whole declension, no case formed in -n; no case indeed wherein the sound of -n entered. This enables us (at least with the A. S.) to make a general assertion concerning the substantives ending in a vowel in contrast to those ending in a consonant, viz. that they take an inflection in -n.
In Icelandic this inflection in -n is concealed by the fact of -an having been changed into -a. However, as this -a represents -an, and as fragments or rudiments of -n are found in the genitive plurals of the neuter and feminine genders (augna, tungna), we may make the same general assertion in Icelandic that we make in A. S., viz. that substantives ending in a vowel take an inflection in -n.
[§ 92]. The points of likeness and difference between two languages, belonging to different divisions of the same Germanic branch, may be partially collected from the following comparison between certain Mœso-Gothic and certain Anglo-Saxon inflections.
[§ 93]. It must, however, be premised, that, although the distinction between nouns taking an inflection in -n, and nouns not so inflected, exists equally in the Mœso-Gothic and the Icelandic, the form in which the difference shows itself is different; and along with the indication of this difference may be introduced the important terms weak and strong, as applied to the declension of nouns.
Weak nouns end in a vowel; or, if in a consonant, in a consonant that has become final from the loss of the vowel that originally followed it. They also form a certain proportion of their oblique cases in -n, or an equivalent to -n—Nom. augô, gen. aug-in-s.
Strong nouns end in a consonant; or, if in a vowel, in one of the vowels allied to the semivowels y or w, and through them to the consonants. They also form their oblique cases by the addition of a simple inflection, without the insertion of n.
Furthermore, be it observed that nouns in general are weak and strong, in other words, that adjectives are weak or
strong, as well as substantives. Between substantives and adjectives, however, there is this difference:—
1. A substantive is either weak or strong, i.e., it has one of the two inflections, but not both. Augô=an eye, is weak under all circumstances; waurd=a word, is strong under all circumstances.
2. An adjective is both weak and strong. The Anglo-Saxon for good is sometimes god (strong), sometimes gode (weak). Which of the two forms is used depends not on the word itself, but on the state of its construction.
In this respect the following two rules are important:—
1. The definite sense is generally expressed by the weak form, as se blinde man=the blind man.
2. The indefinite sense is generally expressed by the strong form, as sum blind man=a blind man.
Hence, as far as adjectives are concerned, the words definite and indefinite coincide with the words weak and strong respectively, except that the former are terms based on the syntax, the latter terms based on the etymology of the word to which they apply.
Declension of Weak Substantives in Mœso-Gothic.
| Neuter. | ||
| Singular. | Plural. | |
| Nom. | Áugô (an eye) | Áugôna. |
| Acc. | Áugô | Áugôna. |
| Dat. | Áugin | Áugam. |
| Gen. | Áugins | Áugônê. |
| Masculine. | ||
| Nom. | Manna (a man) | Mannans. |
| Acc. | Mannan | Mannans. |
| Dat. | Mannin | Mannam. |
| Gen. | Mannins | Mannanê. |
| Feminine. | ||
| Nom. | Tuggô (a tongue) | Tuggôns. |
| Acc. | Tuggôn | Tuggôns. |
| Dat. | Tuggôn | Tuggôm. |
| Gen. | Tuggôns | Tuggônô. |
Declension of Strong Substantives in Mœso-Gothic.
| Neuter. | ||
| Singular. | Plural. | |
| Nom. | Vaúrd (a word) | Vaúrda. |
| Acc. | Vaúrd | Vaúrda. |
| Dat. | Vaúrda | Vaúrdam. |
| Gen. | Vaúrdis | Vaúrdê. |
| Masculine. | ||
| Nom. | Fisks (a fish) | Fiskôs. |
| Acc. | Fisk | Fiskans. |
| Dat. | Fiska | Fiskam. |
| Gen. | Fiskis | Fiskê. |
| Feminine. | ||
| Nom. | Brûþs (a bride) | Brûþeis. |
| Acc. | Brûþ | Brûþins. |
| Dat. | Brûþai | Brûþim. |
| Gen. | Brûþais | Brûþê. |
These may be compared with the Saxon declensions; viz. aúgô with eáge, manna with nama, tuggô with tunge, vaúrd with leáf, fisks with smið, and brûþs with spræc.
Declension of Weak (or Definite) Adjectives in Mœso-Gothic.[[8]]
| Singular. | |||
| Neuter. | Masculine. | Feminine. | |
| Nom. | Blindô | Blinda | Blindô. |
| Acc. | Blindô | Blindan | Blindôn. |
| Dat. | Blindin | Blindin | Blindôn. |
| Gen. | Blindins | Blindins | Blindôns. |
| Plural. | |||
| Nom. | Blindôna | Blindans | Blindôns. |
| Acc. | Blindôna | Blindans | Blindôns. |
| Dat. | Blindam | Blindam | Blindôm. |
| Gen. | Blindônê | Blindanê | Blindônô. |
Declension of strong (or indefinite) adjectives in Mœso-Gothic.[[9]]
| Singular. | |||
| Nom. | Blindata | Blinds | Blinda. |
| Acc. | Blindata | Blindana | Blinda. |
| Dat. | Blindamma | Blindamma | Blindái. |
| Gen. | Blindis | Blindis | Blindáizôs. |
| Plural. | |||
| Nom. | Blinda | Blindái | Blindôs. |
| Acc. | Blinda | Blindans | Blindôs. |
| Dat. | Blindáim | Blindáim | Blindáim. |
| Gen. | Blindáizê | Blindáizê | Blindáizô. |
Observe—In the neuter form blindata M. G. we have the sound of t, as in Icelandic. This becomes z (ts) in Old High German, and s in modern German.
The conjugation of the M. G. is as follows. From the Anglo-Saxon it differs most in its plural persons.
| Indicative. | Subjunctive. | |||||
| M.G. | A.S. | M.G. | A.S. | |||
| Present. | Present. | |||||
| Sing. | 1. Sôk-ja | Lufie. | Sing. | 1. Sôkjáu |
| Lufige. |
| 2. Sôk-eis | Lufast. | 2. Sôkjáis | ||||
| 3. Sôk-eiþ | Lufað. | 3. Sôkjái | ||||
| Plur. | 1. Sôk-jam | Lufiað. | Plur. | 1. Sôkjáima |
| Lufion. |
| 2. Sôk-eiþ | Lufiað. | 2. Sôkjáiþ | ||||
| 3. Sôk-jand | Lufiað. | 3. Sôkjáina | ||||
| Præt. | Præt. | |||||
| Sing. | 1. Sôkida | Lufode. | Sing. | 1. Sôkidêdjáu |
| Lufode. |
| 2. Sôkides | Lufodest. | 2. Sôkidêdeis | ||||
| 3. Sôkida | Lufode. | 3. Sôkidêdi | ||||
| Plur. | 1. Sôkidêdum | Lufodon. | Plur. | 1. Sôkidêdeima |
| Lufodon. |
| 2. Sôkidêduþ | Lufodon. | 2. Sôkidêdeiþ | ||||
| 3. Sôkidêdun | Lufodon. | 3. Sôkidêdeina | ||||
The conjugation of the auxiliary verb in Mœso-Gothic is as follows. It may be compared with the A. S. [§ 89].
| Indicative. Pres. | Subjunctive. Pres. | ||
| Sing. | Plur. | Sing. | Plur. |
| 1. Im (I am) | Sijum. | 1. Sijáu | Sijáima. |
| 2. Is | Sijuþ. | 2. Sijáis | Sijáiþ. |
| 3. Ist | Sind. | 3. Sijái | Sijáina. |
| Præt. | Præt. | ||
| 1. Vas | Vêsum. | 1. Vêsjáu | Vêseima. |
| 2. Vast | Vêsuþ. | 2. Vêseis | Vêseiþ. |
| 3. Vas | Vêsun. | 3. Vêsei | Vêseina. |
| Inf. Visan and Sijan—(to be). | |||
| Part. Visands—(being). | |||
[§ 94]. The points of likeness or difference between two languages, each of the Low Germanic division, may be partially collected from the following comparison between certain Old Frisian and certain Anglo-Saxon inflections.
In the comparison the first point to be noticed is the Transition of Letters.
á in Frisian corresponds to eá in A. S.; as dád, rád, lás, strám, bám, cáp, áre, háp, Frisian; deád, reád, leás, streám, beám, ceáp, eáre, heáp, Saxon; dead, red, loose, stream, tree (boom), bargain (cheap, chapman), ear, heap, English.
é Frisian corresponds to a), the A. S. á; as Eth, téken, hél, bréd, Fris.; áþ, tácen, hál, brád, Saxon; oath, token, hale, broad, English;—b), to A. S. æ; hér, déde, bréda, Frisian; hær, dæd, brædan, A. S.; hair, deed, roast, English.
e to ea and æ A. S.—Frisian thet, A. S. þæt, Engl. that, Fris. gers, A. S. gærs, Engl. grass.—Also to eo; prestere, Fr.; preost A. S., priest Engl.; berch Fr., beorh A. S.; hill (berg, as in iceberg) Engl.; melok Fr., meoloc A. S., milk Engl.
i to eo A. S.—Fr. irthe, A. S. eorðe; Fris. hirte; A. S. heorte; Fris. fir A. S. feor=in English earth, heart, far.
já=eo A. S.; as bjada, beódan, bid—thet fjarde, feorðe, the fourth—sják, seóc, sick.
ju=y or eo A. S.; rjucht, ryth, right—frjund, freond, friend.
Dsz=A. S. cg; Fr. sedza, lidzja; A. S. secgan, licgan; Engl. to say, to lie.
Tz, ts, sz, sth=A. S. c or ce; as szereke, or sthereke, Frisian; cyrice A. S., church Engl.; czetel Fr., cytel A. S., kettle English.
ch Fr.=h A. S., as thjach Fr., þeóh A. S., thigh Engl.—berch, beórh, hill (berg)—dochter, dohtor, daughter, &c.
As a general statement we may say, that in the transition letters the Frisian corresponds with the A. S. more closely than it does with any other language. It must, moreover, be remarked, that, in such pairs of words as frjund and freond, the difference (as far at least as the e and j are concerned) is a mere difference of orthography. Such also is probably the case with the words déd and dæd, and many others.
The Anglo-Saxon inflection of a) Substantives ending in a vowel, b) Substantives ending in a consonant, c) Adjectives with an indefinite d) Adjectives with a definite sense, e) Verbs Active f) and verbs auxiliar, may be seen in the comparison between the A. S. and the Icelandic. The corresponding inflections in Frisian are as follows:—
| (a). | ||||
| Substantives ending in a vowel. | ||||
| Neuter. | Masculine. | Feminine. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Áre (an ear) | Campa (a champion) | Tunge (a tongue). |
| Acc. | Áre | Campa | Tunga. | |
| Dat. | Ára | Campa | Tunga. | |
| Gen. | Ára | Campa | Tunga. | |
| Plur. | Nom. | Ára | Campa | Tunga. |
| Acc. | Ára | Campa | Tunga. | |
| Dat. | Áron | Campon | Tungon. | |
| Gen. | Árona | Campona | Tungona. | |
With respect to the masculine substantives terminating in a consonant, it must be observed that in A. S. there are two modes of declension; in one, the plural ends in -s; in the other, in -a. The specimen in [§ 83] represents the first of these modes only. From this the Frisian is essentially different. With the second it has a close alliance; e.g.:—
| Saxon. | Frisian. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Sunu (a son) | Sunu. |
| Acc. | Sunu | Sunu. | |
| Dat. | Suna | Suna. | |
| Gen. | Suna | Suna. | |
| Plur. | Nom. | Suna | Suna. |
| Acc. | Suna | Suna. | |
| Dat. | Sunum | Sunum. | |
| Gen. | Sunena | (Sunena). |
| (e). | ||
| The Persons of the Present Tense. | ||
| Indicative Mood. | ||
| Sing. | 1. Berne | I burn. |
| 2. Bernst | Thou burnest. | |
| 3. Bernth | He burns. | |
| Plur. | 1. Bernath | We burn. |
| 2. Bernath | Ye burn. | |
| 3. Bernath | They burn. | |
In the inflection of the verbs there is between the Frisian and A. S. this important difference. In A. S. the infinite ends in -an macian, to make, læran, to learn, bærnan, to burn; whilst in Frisian it ends in -a, as maka, léra, berna.
| (f). | ||||||||||||
| The Auxiliar Verb Wesa, To Be. | ||||||||||||
| Indicative. | ||||||||||||
| Present. | Past. | |||||||||||
| Sing. |
|
| ||||||||||
| Plur. |
|
| ||||||||||
| Subjunctive. | ||||||||||||
| Present. | Past. | |||||||||||
| Sing. | 1. 2. 3. Se | 1. 2. 3. Wére. | ||||||||||
| Plur. | 1. 2. 3. Se | 1. 2. 3. Wére. | ||||||||||
Infin. Wesa. Pr. Part. Wesande. Past Part. E-wesen.
The Frisian numerals (to be compared with those of the Anglo-Saxons, p. [43]), are as follows:—Én, twá, thrjú,
fjúwer, fíf, sex, sjúgun, achta, njugun, tian, &c. Of these the first three take an inflection, e.g., En, like Gode and the adjectives, has both a definite and an indefinite form, en, and thet ene; whilst twa and thrjú run as follows:—Nom. and Acc. Neut. twa; Masc. twene; Fem. twa; Dat. twam; Gen. twira.—Nom. and Acc. Neut. thrju; Masc. thre; Fem. thrja; Dat. thrim; Gen. thrira.
In respect to the Pronouns, there is in the Old Frisian of Friesland no dual number, as there is in Anglo-Saxon. On the other hand, however, the Frisians (whilst they have no such form as his) possess, like the Icelandic, the inflected adjectival pronoun sin, corresponding to the Latin suus: whilst, like the Anglo-Saxons, and unlike the Icelanders, they have nothing to correspond with the Latin se.
[§ 95]. In Frisian there is between the demonstrative pronoun used as an article, and the same word used as a demonstrative in the limited sense of the term, the following difference of declension:—
THE ARTICLE.
| Neuter. | Masculine. | Feminine. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Thet | Thi | Thjú. |
| Acc. | Thet | Thene | Thá. | |
| ||||
| Dat. | Thá | There. | ||
| Gen. | Thes | There. | ||
| ||||
| Plur. | Nom. | Thá. | ||
| Acc. | Thá. | |||
| Dat. | Thá. | |||
| Gen. | Théra. | |||
PRONOUN.
The Demonstrative in the limited sense of the word.
| Neuter. | Masculine. | Feminine. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Thet | Thi | Se. |
| Acc. | Thet | Thene | Se. | |
| ||||
| Dat. | Tham | There. | ||
| Gen. | Thes | There. | ||
| ||||
| Plur. | Nom. | Se. | ||
| Acc. | Se. | |||
| Dat. | Thám. | |||
| Gen. | Théra. | |||
The Saxons draw no such a distinction. With them the article and demonstrative is declined as follows:—
| Neuter. | Masculine. | Feminine. | ||
| Sing. | Nom. | Þæt | Se | Seo. |
| Acc. | Þæt | Þone | Þá. | |
| ||||
| Dat. | Þam | Þǽre. | ||
| Gen. | Þæs | Þǽre. | ||
| ||||
| Plur. | Nom. | Þá. | ||
| Acc. | Þá. | |||
| Dat. | Þám. | |||
| Gen. | Þára. | |||
[§ 96]. Specimen of Glossarial affinity.—Taken from Rask's Preface to his Frisian Grammar:—
| Frisian. | Anglo Saxon. | English. |
| Áge | Eáge | Eye. |
| Háved | Heáfod | Head. |
| Kind | Cild | Child. |
| Erva | Eafora | Heir. |
| Drochten | Drihten | Lord. |
| Nacht | Niht | Night. |
| Réd | Rǽd | Council (Rede). |
| Déde | Dǽd | Deed. |
| Nose | Nasu | Nose. |
| Éin | Ágen | Own. |
| Kápie | Ceapige | I buy (Chapman). |
| Dua | Don | To do. |
| Slá | Sleán | Slay. |
| Gunga | Gangan | Go (Gang). |
[§ 97]. In this Chapter there has been, thus far, an attempt to do two things at once. Firstly, to exhibit the general likeness between stocks, branches, &c.; and secondly, to show the special affinities between certain languages allied to our
own, and of the Gothic Stock. What follows, consists of certain observations upon two or three points of nomenclature.
[§ 98]. German.—The points to remember concerning this term are—
1. That it is no national name, but a name given by the Latins to the natives of the country called Germania. The word German is foreign to all the Gothic languages.
2. That it was first applied to proper Germanic tribes in the time of Julius Cæsar, and that it served to distinguish the Gothic Germans from the Celtic Gauls.
3. That, anterior to the time of Cæsar, there is no proof of it being applied as a distinctive designation to any of the tribes to whom it was afterwards limited. The first tribe to whom it was applied, was (in the opinion of the present writer) a Gallic tribe.
4. That since the time of Julius Cæsar, its application has been constant, i.e., it has always meant Gothic tribes, or Gothic languages.
5. That sometimes it has been general to the whole nation—Unde fit ut tantæ populorum multitudines arctoo sub axe oriantur, ut non immerito universa illa regio Tanai tenus usque ad occiduum, licet et propriis loca ea singula nuncupentur nominibus, generali tamen vocabulo Germania vocitetur ... Gothi, siquidem, Vandalique, Rugi, Heruli, atque Turcilingi, necnon etiam aliæ feroces ac barbaræ nationes e Germania prodierunt.—Paulus Diaconus.
6. That sometimes it has been peculiar and distinctive to certain prominent portions of the nation—equi frænis Germanicis, sellis Saxonicis falerati.
7. That the general power of the word has been, with few exceptions, limited to the Germans of Germany. We do not find either English or Scandinavian writers calling their countrymen Germani.
8. That the two German tribes most generally meant, when the word German is used in a limited sense, are the Franks and the Alemanni.
9. That by a similar latitude the words Francic and
Alemannic have been occasionally used as synonymous with Germanic.
10. That the origin of the word Germani, in the Latin language, is a point upon which there are two hypotheses.
a. That it is connected with the Latin word Germani=brothers, meaning either tribes akin to one another, or tribes in a degree of brotherly alliance with Rome.
b. That it grew out of some such German word as Herman, Irmin, Wehrmann, or the Herm- in Hermunduri, Hermiones, &c.
Neither of these views satisfies the present writer.
For all the facts concerning the word Germani, see the Introduction to the third edition of the Deutsche Grammar.
[§ 99]. Dutch.—For the purposes of Philology the meaning given to this word is inconvenient. In England, it means the language of the people of Holland.
In Germany, Holland, and Scandinavia, it means the language of the people of Germany in general; and this general power of the word is retained even with us in the expression High-Dutch, and Low-Dutch. In the present work the term is avoided as much as possible. Nevertheless, wherever it occurs it means the Dutch of Holland.
The origin of the word has been a subject of much investigation; the question, however, may be considered to be settled by the remarks of Grimm, D. G.—Introduction to the third edition.
1. It was originally no national name at all.
2. In the earliest passage where it occurs, the derivative form þiudiskô corresponds with the Greek word ἐθνικῶς—The Mœso-Gothic Translation of the New Testament—Galatians, ii. 14.
3. The derivation of the word from the substantive þiudu=a people, a nation, is undoubted.
4. So also is the derivation of the modern word Dutch, in all its varied forms:—Old High-German, Diutisc; Anglo-Saxon, Þeódisc; Latin, Theodisca, Theudisca, Teutisca; Italian, Tedesco; Danish, Tyske; English, Dutch; the latter part of the word being the adjectival ending -isc=ish.
5. The original meaning being of, or belonging to, the people, or of, or belonging to, the nation, secondary meanings grew out of it.
6. Of these the most remarkable are a) the power given to the word in Ulphilas (heathen), illustrated by the similarly secondary power of the Greek ἔθνικος; b) the meaning vernacular, provincial or vulgar given to it as applied to language.
7. This latter power was probably given to it about the ninth century.
8. That it was not given much before, is inferred from negative evidence. The word theotisca is not found in the Latin writers of the sixth, seventh, and eighth centuries, although there are plenty of passages where it might well have been used had it existed. The terms really used are either patrius sermo, sermo barbaricus, sermo vulgaricus, lingua rustica; or else the names of particular tribes, as lingua Anglorum, Alamannorum.
9. That it was current in the ninth century is evident from a variety of quotations:—Ut quilibet episcopus homilias aperte transferre studeat in rusticam Romanam linguam, aut þeotiscam, quo tandem cuncti possint intelligere quæ dicantur.—Synodus Turonensis. Quod in lingua Thiudisca scaftlegi, id est armorum depositio, vocatur.—Capit. Wormatiense. De collectis quas Theudisca lingua heriszuph appellat.—Conventus Silvacensis. Si barbara, quam Teutiscam dicunt, lingua loqueretur.—Vita Adalhardi, &c.—D.G., i. p. 14, Introduction.
10. That its present national sense is wholly secondary and derivative, and that originally it was no more the name of a people or a language than the word vulgate in the expression the vulgate translation of the Scriptures is the name of a people or a language.
[§ 100]. Teutonic.—About the tenth century the Latin writers upon German affairs began to use not only the words Theotiscus and Theotiscé, but also the words Teutonicus and Teutonicé. Upon this, Grimm remarks that the latter term sounded more learned; since Teutonicus was a classical word, an adjective derived from the Gentile name of the Teutones conquered by Manus. Be it so. It then follows that the connexion between Teutonicus and Theotiscus is a mere accident, the origin
of the two words being different. The worthlessness of all evidence concerning the Germanic origin of the Teutonic tribes conquered by Marius, based upon the connexion between the word Teuton and Dutch, has been pointed out by the present writer in the 17th number of the Philological Transactions.[[10]] All that is proved is this, viz., that out of the confusion between the two words arose a confusion between the two nations. These last may or may not have been of the same race.
[§ 101]. Anglo-Saxon—In the ninth century the language of England was Angle, or English. The lingua Anglorum of Bede is translated by Alfred on englisce. The term Saxon was in use also at an early (perhaps an equally early) date—fures quos Saxonice dicimus vergeld þeóvas. The compound term Anglo-Saxon is later.—Grimm, Introduction to the third edition of D.G., p. 2.
[§ 102]. Icelandic, Old Norse.—Although Icelandic is the usual name for the mother-tongue of the Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian, the Norwegian philologists generally prefer the term Old Norse.
In favour of this view is the fact that Norway was the mother-country, Iceland the colony, and that much of what is called Old Icelandic was composed in Norway.
Still the reason is insufficient; since the present term Icelandic is given to the language not because Iceland was the country that produced, but because it is the country that has preserved it.
This leads to the argument in its most general form—should a language be named from the colony, or from the mother-country? The Norwegians say from the mother-country. Let us consider this.
Suppose that whilst the Latin of Virgil and Cicero in Italy had been changing into the modern Italian, in some old Roman colony (say Sardinia) it had remained either wholly
unaltered, or else, altered so little as for the modern Sardinian—provided he could read at all—to be able to read the authors of the Augustan age, just like those of the era of Charles Albert; no other portion of the old Roman territory—not even Rome itself—having any tongue more like to that of the Classical writers, than the most antiquated dialect of the present Italian. Suppose, too, that the term Latin had become obsolete, would it be imperative upon us to call the language of the Classics Old Italian, Old Roman, or at least Old Latin, when no modern native of Rome, Latium, or Italy could read them? Would it be wrong to call it Sardinian when every Sarde could read them? I think not. Mutatis mutandis, this is the case with Iceland and Norway.