The River-Names of Europe

by Robert Ferguson

Ireland.	The Bann. Three rivers.
Scotland.	The Bann(ock) by Bannockburn.
Bohemia.	The Ban(itz).

Of the two following names the former may be referred to the Welsh claer, and the latter to the Swed. klar, both same as Eng. clear.

Ireland.	The Clare. Connaught.
Sweden.	The Klara (â, river).

From the Welsh têr, pure, clear, we may get the following. The root is found in Sansc. tar, to penetrate, whence taras, transparent.

1.	Italy.	The Taro. Joins the Po.
	Siberia.	The Tara. Joins the Tobol.
2.	With the ending en.
	England.	The Tearne. Shropshire.
		The Dearne. Yorkshire.
	France.	The Tarn. Joins the Garonne.
3.	With the ending es.
	Hungary.	The Tarisa.

The following two rivers of Germany may, as suggested by Förstemann, be referred to Old High Germ. flât, pure, bright.

1.	Germany.	Flad(aha), 8th cent. Not identified.
2.	With the ending enz.
	Germany.	Fladinz, 11th cent., now the Fladnitz.

The root bil I have, in river-names generally, referred at p. [84] to the Celtic biol, water. But in the Slavonic districts we may also think of the Slav. biala, white, though we cannot say but that even there the Celtic word may intermix.

Germany.	The Bila in Bohemia.
	The Biala in Silesia.
Russia.	The Bielaya. Joins the Kama.
	The Bialy. Joins the Narew.

From the Old High Germ. swarz, Mod. Germ. schwarz, black, are the names of several rivers of Germany, as the Schwarza, the Schwarzau, the Schwarzbach, &c. Also in Norway we have two rivers called Svart Elv, and in Sweden the Svart An, which falls into the Mälar Lake. From the Old Norse doeckr, dark, may be the Dokka in Norway, but for the Docker of Lancashire the Gael. doich, swift, may be more suitable.