[CHAPTER III.]
Vocabulary.
The vocabulary of PG. has but few synonyms, a single word being used where High German has several, as 'plats' (place) for G. platz and ort. Of the German words for horse (pferd, ross, gaul, etc.), 'gaul' is universal in speech, ross seems not to be known, and pferd is almost restricted to print.[15] A colt is not called füllen as in German, but 'hutsch,' with a diminutival 'hutschli' (in Suabian hutschel, hutschele, Westerwald husz, Lusatian huszche.)
A pig is not ferkel (Lat. porc-ell-us, Welsh porch-ell) but 'seili' (from sau), and children call it 'wuts' (Suab. butzel) a repetition of this being used (as well in vicinal English) in calling these animals. 'Kalb' (calf, pl. 'kelwǝr') is named by children 'hamǝli'[16] when a suckling. Cows are called with 'kum see! see! see hamǝli! see!' and when close at hand with 'suk suk suk' (as in forsook)—used also in the English of the locality.[17]
Of G. knabe (boy) and bube, pl. buben, PG. takes the latter as 'buu,' pl. 'buuwǝ;' and of the G. haupt and kopf (head) it prefers the latter as 'kǝp.' Of the verbs schmeissen and werfen (to throw), kriegen and bekommen (to obtain), hocken and sitzen (to sit), schwetzen and sprechen (to talk), erzählen and sagen (to tell), PG. uses 'schmeissǝ,' 'kriighǝ,' 'hǝkǝ,' 'schwetsǝ' and 'saaghǝ' almost exclusively.
The suffix -lein, condensed to -li and -l, is the universal diminutival, as in Swisserland and South Germany—a small house being called 'heissli' and not häus-chen, and a girl 'meedl' and not mädchen. It is, however, very often associated with the adjective klee (little) G. klein, as in PG. 'ǝ klee˛ bichli' (a little book).
German kartoffeln (potatoes) is rejected for G. grundbirnen[18] under the form of 'krumpiirǝ,' where 'krum' is accepted by some as krumm (crooked), while some regard the latter part as meaning pears, and others as berries.
F'rleícht, Fileícht (perhaps, G. vielleicht) are in use, but the former seems the more common.
Sauǝrampl, G. sauerampfer (sorrel, Rumex).
Rewwǝr, Krik, Krikli (Eng. river, creek) have thrust aside G. flusz and bach.
Laafǝ (to walk; G. laufen to run, and to walk).
Schpring-ǝ (to run, a Swiss usage. G. springen, to leap, spring, gush).
Petsǝ (to pinch), Alsace pfetsǝ, Swiss pfätzen, Suab. pfetzen.
Tref (Suab., a knock, blow). PG. 'ich tref dich' (I strike thee).
Schmuts (a hearty kiss). Swiss, Suab., in G. schmatz.
Un'ich (under), G. unter, occurs in provincial German as unn-ig and unt-ig; hinnig occurs also, PG. 'hinnich,' as in 'hinnich d'r diir' behind the door.
Wii m'r donaus glǝffǝ sin, bin ich hinnich iin nooch glǝffǝ. As we walked out, I walked behind him.
For 'hinnich,' Alsatian has hing-ǝ, as in 'M'r geen hing-ǝ [nach den] noo dǝ goortǝ noo'—We go along behind the garden.
Uumǝt, oomǝt, Austr. omad, Swiss amet, G. das grummet (aftermath). Suab. ämt, emt, ömd, aumad; Bavar. âmad.
Arik, arrig (much, very), Swiss arig, G. arg (bad, cunning).
PG. Ich hab net gwist [Suab. gwest] dass es so arrik reeghǝrt. I did not suppose it to be raining so hard.
Artlich (tolerably) is the Swiss artlich and artig.
Ewwǝ, G. adv. ēben (really, even, just), but it is PG. 'eewǝ' when it is the adj. even.
Ich hab ewwǝ net gwist for sure eb ær ǝ fraa hǝt ǝdǝr net. (Rauch.) I did not even know 'for sure' if he has a wife or not.
ámanat, adv. metathesised and adapted from G. an einem Orte (at a place), a dative for an accusative an einen Ort (in a place) as used here. In the example, 'anǝ' is G. an inflected, and zŭ of zu schícken is omitted, as sometimes done in PG.
... wan als ǝ briif kummt f'r ámanat anǝ schikǝ ... (Rauch.) When ever a letter comes for to send on—to be sent on.
Henkweidǝ (weeping willow). G. Hängebirke, is hanging birch.
Tappǝr (quickly), as in Schpring tappǝr run quick! be in a hurry—thus used in Westerwald, and as very in Silesia. G. tapfer (brave, bravely), E. dapper.
Meenǝr (more), Meenscht (most), for G. mehr, meist, are réferable to mancher and a hypothetic mannigste. 'Mee' and 'mee˛' (more), Swiss—"Was wett i meh?" What would I more. "Nimme meh," never more. PG. 'Was wet ich mee? Nimmi mee.' (See Ellis, Early English Pronunciation, p. 663, note 39.)
Schtrublich, schtruwlich. G. struppig (bristly, rough), Swiss strublig, PG. 'schtruwlich' (disordered, uncombed, as hair). English of the locality stroobly.
Neewich; SG. nebensich, Wetterau (upper Hessia) nêbig, G. neben (beside).
"Naevvich der mommy ruht er now [Eng. now]
In sellem Gottes-acker[19] dort,
Shraegs[20] fun der Kreutz Creek Kerrich nuf, [hinauf.]
Uft denk ich doch an seller ort!"—Rachel Bahn.Hensching, G. handschue (gloves, Sw. händschen) becomes a new word with 'hen' for hände (hands), the ä umlaut being used to pluralise, but the word is singular also, and, to particularise, a glove proper is 'fing-er hensching' and a mitten 'fauscht-hensching.' This termination is given to 'pærsching' a peach.
Sidder (since), Swiss sider, sitter; Suabian and Silesian sider; Scotch, etc., sithens.
Schpel (a pin), SG. die spelle (a better word than G. stecknadel); Dutch speld (with d educed from l); Lat. SPIcuLa.
Botsǝr (masc. a tail-less hen), Holstein, buttars. Provincial G. butzig (stumpy).
Mallikǝp (i.e. thick-headed, a tadpole). Swiss mollig, molli (stout, blunt); Suabian mollig (fleshy). Alsatian muurkrǝntl (tadpole) from muur, G. moder, Eng. mud. The PG. of western New York has taken the New England word polliwog.
Blech (tin, a tin cup); dim. 'blechli.' Blechiche Bool (a tin bowl, i.e. a dipper, a convenient word which seems not to have been introduced). In Pennsylvanian English, a tin cup is a tin.
In old English, 'than' represented than and then, and PG. has 'dann' for both G. dann (then) and denn (for); and also 'wann' for wann (when) and wenn (if), as in Rachel Bahn's lines—
Ich hab ewwǝ net gwist for sure eb ær ǝ fraa hǝt ǝdǝr net. (Rauch.) I did not even know 'for sure' if he has a wife or not.
... wan als ǝ briif kummt f'r ámanat anǝ schikǝ ... (Rauch.) When ever a letter comes for to send on—to be sent on.