Testis Arar, Rhodanusque celer, magnusque Garumna.Tibullus.Qua Rhodanus raptim velocibus undisIn mare fert Ararim.Silv. Ital.Præcipitis Rhodani sic intercisa fluentis.Ausonius.
Testis Arar, Rhodanusque celer, magnusque Garumna.Tibullus.
Qua Rhodanus raptim velocibus undisIn mare fert Ararim.Silv. Ital.
Præcipitis Rhodani sic intercisa fluentis.Ausonius.
I think that Donaldson and Mone are unquestionably wrong in making the name of this river Rho-dan-us, from a worddan, water. Still more unreasonable is a derivation in theCod. Vind., fromroth, violent, anddan, Celt. and Hebr. a judge! On this Zeuss (Gramm. Celt.) remarks—"The syllableanof the word Rhodanus is without doubt only derivative, and we have nothing here to do with a judge; nevertheless the meaning violent (currens, rapidus,) is not tobe impugned." The word in question seems to be found in Welshrhedu, to run, to race, Gael.roth, a wheel, &c. But there is a word of opposite meaning, Gael.reidh, smooth, which is liable to intermix. Also the Germ.roth, red, may come in, though I do not think that Förstemann has reason in placing all the German rivers to it.
1.England.TheRotha. Lake district.Germany.Rot(aha), 8th cent. TheRoth, two rivers, theRott, three rivers, theRod(au), theRod(ach), and theRott(ach), all seem to have had the same ancient name.Rad(aha)ant., now theRod(ach).Holland.TheRotte, by Rotterdam.Asia Min.Rhodiusant.[37]Mysia.2.With the ending en.England.TheRodden. Shropshire.France.Rhodănusant., now the Rhone.Germany.TheRothainenear Strassburg, seems to have been formerlyRot(aha).3.With the ending ent.[38]Germany.Radantia, 8th cent., now theRednitz.4.With the ending er.England.TheRotherin Sussex.TheRother, joins the Thames at Rotherhithe.5.With the ending el.Germany.Raotula, 8th cent., now theRötel.
Allied to the last word is the Eng.race, and the many cognate words in the Indo-European languages which have the sense of rapid motion, as Welshrhysu, &c.
1.Scotland.TheRasay. Rosshire.Ireland.TheRoss.Germany.TheRiss. Wirtemberg.Switzerland.TheReuss. Joins the Aar.Russia.TheRasa.Spain.TheRiaza.Asia Min.Rhesusof Homer not identified.India.Rasa, the Sanscrit name of a river not identified.2.With the ending el.Germany.TheRossl(au). Joins the Elbe.3.With the ending et.Germany.TheRezat. Joins the Rednitz.
From the Gael.garbh, Welshgarw, violent, Armstrong derives the name of the Garonne and other rivers.[39]The root seemsto be found in Sansc.karvorkarp, Latincarpo, &c., implying violent action. The Lat.carpois applied by the poets to denote rapid progress, as of a river, through a country. So likewise more metaphorically to the manner in which a bold and steep mountain rises from the valley. As also one of our own poets has said—
Behind the valley topmost GargarusStands up andtakesthe morning—
Behind the valley topmost GargarusStands up andtakesthe morning—
Hence this root is found in the names of mountains as well as rivers—e.g., the Carpathians (Carpātes), and the Isle of Carpăthus, which "consists for the most part of bare mountains, rising to a central height of 4,000 feet, with a steep and inaccessible coast."[40]
1.Scotland.Garfwater, a burn in Lanarkshire.TheGryffe. Renfrew.Germany.TheGrabow. Pruss. Pom.Danub. Prov.Carpis, Herodotus, see p.73.2.With the ending en.Scotland.TheGirvan. Ayr.Italy.TheCarpino. Joins the Tiber.TheGravino. Naples.3.With the ending el.Italy.Cerbalus[41]ant., now theCervaro—here?
From the Sansc.su, to shoot forth,sûs,sûtis, rushing or darting, Gr.σουσις, cursus, I take to be the following. Among the derived words, the Gael.sûth, a billow, seems to be that which comes nearest to the sense required.
1.Switzerland.TheSuss.Denmark.TheSuus(aa).Bohemia.TheSaz(awa). Joins the Moldau.Portugal.TheSouza.Siberia.TheSos(va), two rivers.India.TheSut(oodra), or Sutledge—here?[42]2.With the ending en.France.TheSuzon.Russia.TheSosna, two rivers.
Probably to the above we may put a formsest,sost, found in the following.
1.Germany.TheSoeste. Oldenburg.Italy.Sessitesant., now the Sesia.Persia.SoastusorSuastusant.2.With the ending er.Russia.TheSestra. Gov. Moskow.Germany.TheSoster(bach). Joins the Lippe.
To the above root I also place the following, corresponding more distinctly with Old High Germanschuzzen, Ang.-Sax.sceotan, Eng.shoot, Obs. Gael. and Ir.sciot, dart, arrow.[43]
1.With the ending en.Germany.Scuzna, 8th cent., now theSchussen.Scuzenant., now theSchozach.2.With the ending er.Germany.Scutara, 10th cent., now theSchutter, two rivers.Scuntra, 8th cent., now theSchondraand theSchunter.
From the Germ.jagen, to hunt, to drive or ride fast, Bender derives the name of the Jaxt, in the sense of swiftness, suggesting also a comparison with the ancient Jaxartes of Asia. Förstemann considers both suggestions doubtful, but the former seems to me to be reasonable enough. The older senseofjagenis found in the Sansc.yug, to dart forth, formed on the simple verbya, to go. And appellatives are found in the Finnic wordsjokk,jöggi, a river. As for the Jaxartes, I am rather inclined to think that the more correct form would be Jazartes, and that it contains the wordjezer, before referred to.
1.Russia.TheJug. Joins the Dwina.2.With the ending et.Italy.Jactusant. Affluent of the Po.Persia.TheJaghatu.Germany.TheJahde,[44]in Oldenburg.3.With the ending st.Germany.Jagistaant., now theJaxtorJagst.
From the rootvip, to move, p.64, by the prefixs, is formed Old Norsesvipa, Ang.-Sax.swîfan, Eng.sweep, &c. In these the sense varies between going fast and going round, and the same may be the case in the following names.
France.TheSuippe. Joins the Aisne.Germany.Suevus, 2nd cent., now the Warnow, or, according to Zeuss, the Oder.Suab(aha), 8th cent., now theSchwab(ach).
From the Obs. Gael.sgiap,sgiob, to move rapidly, Eng.skip, may be the following.
1.England.TheSheaf, by Sheffield.Germany.Sciffa, 9th cent., now theSchupf.Asia Min.Scopasant., now the Aladan.2.With the ending en.England.TheSkippon. Joins the Wyre.
In the Gael.brais, impetuous, related perhaps to Lat.verso, we may find the root of the following.
1.Germany.TheBirse. Prussia.Switzerland.TheBirse. Cant. Berne.2.With the ending en.Ireland.TheBrosna. Leinster.Transylvania.TheBurzen. Joins the Aluta.Pruss. Pol.TheProsna.3.With the ending el.France.TheBresle. Enters the English Channel.4.With the ending ent.Germany.ThePersante. Pruss. Pom.
From the Sansc.raborrav, to dart forth, whence (in a somewhat changed sense) Eng.rave, Frenchravir, Lat.rabidus, &c. The original meaning of a ravine was a great flood, or as Cotgrave expresses it—"A ravine or inundation of water, which overwhelmeth all things that come in its way."
1.Ireland.TheRobe. Connaught.India.TheRaveeor Iraotee—here?2.With the ending en.England.Various small streams calledRaven,Ravenbeck, &c.France.TheRoubion, affluent of the Rhone—here?
From the Sansc.math, to move, are derived, as I take it, Old High Germanmuot, Mod. Germ.muth, Ang.-Sax.môd, courage or spirit, Welshmwyth, swift, &c., to which I place the following.
1.Switzerland.TheMuotta. Cant. Schwytz.2.Compounded with vey, stream or river.Wales.TheMuthvey. Three rivers.
The Sansc.sphar,sphurj, to burst forth, shews the root of a number of words suchasspark,spring,spirt,spruce,spry, in which the sense of briskness or liveliness is more or less contained. But the Sansc.spharorsparmust be traced back to a simpler formspaorspe, as found inspew, to vomit, and in the wordspa, now confined to medicinal springs.
1.Scotland.TheSpey. Elgin.2.With the ending en.Scotland.TheSpean.3.With the ending er.Scotland.TheSpear.Germany.Spira, 8th cent., now theSpeier.TheSpree. Joins the Havel.
Derived forms from the above root are also the following, which correspond more closely with Germ.sprütsen, Ang.-Sax.sprytan, Eng.spirt, Ital.sprizzare. And I think that most of these names are probably German.
England.TheSprint, a small stream in Westmoreland.Germany.Sprazah, 9th cent., some stream in Lower Austria.TheSprottain Silesia.Sprenzala, 8th cent., now theSprenzel.Spurchine(bach),[45]9th cent., now theSpirckel(bach).Eu. Turkey.TheSpressa. Joins the Bosna.
In the preceding chapter I have treated of the rootal,el,il, to go, and various of its derivations. There is another,alac,alc,ilc, which, as it seems most probably either to have the meaning of swiftness, as in the Lat.alacer, or of tortuousness, as in the Greekἑλικος, I include in this place.
1.Russia.TheIlek. Joins the Ural.Sicily.Halycusant., now the Platani.Asia Minor.Alcesant. Bithynia.2.Compounded with may, main, river.Siberia.TheOlekma. Joins the Lena.Germany.Alkmana, 8th century, now the Altmühl.Greece.Haliacmonant., now the Vistritsa.
From the Welshtarddu, to burst forth, we may take the following. There does not seem any connection between this and theroot ofdart(jaculum); the latter from the first signifies penetration, and in river-names comes before us in the oblique sense of clearness or transparency.
1.Scotland.TheTarth. Lanarkshire.Libya.Darădusant., now the Rio di Ouro.Armenia.Daradax[46]ant. (Xenophon).2.With the ending er.France.TheTardoire. Dep. Charente.Aust. Italy.TheTartaro.3.With the ending es.Spain.Tartessusant., now the Guadalquiver.
With the Sansc.till, to move, to agitate, we may probably connect the Gael.dileandtuil, Welshdiluw,dylif,dylwch, a flood, deluge, as also Ang.-Sax.dilgian, Germantilgen, to overthrow, destroy, &c. The Ang.-Sax.dêlan, Germ.thielen, to divide, in the sense of boundary, may however intermix in these names.
1.England.TheTill. Northumberland.Ireland.TheDeel. Limerick.Germany.TheDill. Nassau.Belgium.Thilia, 9th cent., now theDylein Bravant.Switzerland.TheThiele.2.With the ending en.Germany.TheTollen. Mecklenburg-Schwerin.3.With the ending er.Scotland.TheDillarburn. Lesmahagow.4.With the ending es.Germany.TheTilse, by Tilsit.
With the two Welsh formsdylifanddylwch, deluge, we may perhaps connect the following, though for the former the Ang.-Sax.delfan, to dig,delf, a ditch, may also be suitable.
Germany.Delv(unda), 9th century, now theDelven(au).Delchana, 11th century, now theDalcke.
From the Gael. and Ir.taosg, to pour,tias, tide, flood, may be the following. Perhaps the special sense of cataract may come in, at least in some cases, as two of the under-noted rivers, the Tees and the Tosa, are noted for their falls.
1.England.TheTees. Durham.Switzerland.TheTöss. Cant. Zurich.Piedmont.TheTosa.Russia.TheTescha. Joins the Oka.Hungary.Tysiaant., now theTheiss.Greece.Tiasaant. Laconia.India.TheTouse—here?2.With the ending en.Switzerland.TheTessinorTicino.Germany.TheDesna. Joins the Dnieper.France.TheTacon. Dep. Jura.3.With the ending el.Germany.Tussale(Genitive), 11th cent., now theDusselby Düsseldorf.4.With the ending st.[47]England.TheTest. Hants.Germany.TheDista. Prussia.India.TheTeesta—here?
From the Sansc.gadorgand, Ang.-Sax.geôtan, Suio-Goth.gjuta, Danishgyde, Old Norsegiosa, Old High Ger.giezen, Obs. Gael.guis, all having the meaning of Eng. "gush," we get the following. The Gotha or Gœta of Sweden may probably derive its name from the well-known fall which it makes atTrolhætta. So also the Gaddada of Hindostan is noted for its falls; and the Giessbach is of European celebrity. But in some of the other names the sense may not extend beyond that of wandering, as we find it in Eng.gad, which I take to be also from this root. Or that of stream, as in Old High Germ.giozo, Gael. and Ir.gaisidh, rivulus.
1.England.TheGade. Herts.Scotland.Gadaant.,[48]now theJedby Jedburgh.Germany.TheGose. Joins the Ocker.Geis(aha), 8th cent., now theGeisa.TheGande, Brunswick—here, or tocan,cand, pure?Switzerland.TheGiess(bach). Lake of Brienz.Spain.TheGata. Joins the Alagon.Sweden.TheGothaorGœta.TheGidea, enters the G. of Bothnia.Asia.Gyndes(Herodotus), perhaps the Diala—here?2.With the ending en.Asia Minor.Cydnusant., now the Tersoos Chai.3.With the ending er.Persia.TheGader.Sardinia.Cædriusant., now the Fiume dei Orosei.4.With the ending el.Germany.Gisil(aha), 8th cent., now theGiesel—here?5.With the ending ed.India.TheGaddada.6.Compounded with main, stream.Switzerland.TheGadmen.
From the Sansc.arborarv, to ravage or destroy, cognate with Lat.orbo, &c., may be the following. To the very marked characteristic of the Arve in Savoy I have referred at p.6. But there is a word of precisely opposite meaning, the Celt.arab, Welsharaf, gentle, which is very liable to intermix.
1.France.TheArveand theErve.Germany.Orb(aha), 11th cent., now theOrb.Sardinia.TheArveand theOrbe.Hungary.TheArva. Joins the Waag.Spain.TheArva, three rivers, tributaries to the Ebro.2.With the ending en.Scotland.TheIrvine. Co. Ayr.France.Arvennaant., now theOrvanne.3.With the ending el.Germany.Arbalo, 1st cent., now theErpe.4.With the ending es.Asia Minor.Harpăsusant., now theHarpa.
In the Sansc.cal, to move, and the derivatives Sansc.calas, Gr.κελης, Obs. Gael.callaidh, Latinceler, all having the same meaning—the sense of rapidity seems sufficiently marked to include them in this chapter.
1.Scotland.TheGala. Roxburgh.Sicily.Gelaant.[49]Illyria.TheGail.Greece.Callasant., in Eubœa.As. Turkey.TheChalusof Xenophon, now the Koweik.2.With the ending en.Ireland.TheCallan. Armagh.3.With the ending er = Lat. celer?Italy.Calorant., now theCalore.4.With the ending es = Sansc. calas, &c.?Germany.Chalusus, 2nd cent., supposed to be the Trave.TheKels, in Bavaria.India.TheCailas.
I am inclined to bring in here, as a derivative form ofcal, and perhaps corresponding with the Obs. Gael.callaidh, celer, the formscaled,calt,gelt. That the Germ.kalt, Eng.cold, may intermix, is very probable, but I do not think that all the English rivers at any rate can be placed to it. There is more to be said for it in the case of the Caldew than of the others, for one of the two streams that form it is called the Cald-beck (i.e., cold brook), and it seems natural that the whole river should then assume the name of Caldew (cold river). Yet there may be nothing more in it than that the Saxons or Danes who succeeded to the name, adopted it in their own sense, andconformedto it. It is to be observed that although the form Caldew corresponds with the Germ. Chaldhowa, yet that the local pronunciation is invariably Cauda (=Calda), corresponding with the Scandinavian form. Upon the whole however, there is much doubt about this group; the formgeltFörstemann refers, as I myself had previously done, to Old Norsegelta, in the sense of resonare. In the following names I take the Kalit(va) of Russia, andthe Celydnus and Celadon of Greece to approach the nearest to the original form.
1.England.TheGelt. Cumberland.TheCheltby Cheltenham—here?TheCald(ew). Cumberland.Germany.TheCald(howa), (Adam Brem.), now seems to be called the Aue.Russia.TheKalit(va). Joins the Donetz.2.With the ending en.Germany.Gelten(aha), 11th cent., now theGeltn(ach).Greece.Celydnusant. Epirus.Celadonant. Elis.3.With the ending er.England.TheCalder. Three rivers.Scotland.TheCalder. Joins the Clyde.Belgium.Galthera, 9th cent.
I am also inclined to bring in, as another derivative form ofcal, the wordcalip,calb,kelp. The only appellatives I find for it are the wordkelp, sea-weed, and the Scottishkelpie, a water-spirit, wherein, as in other words of the same sort, may perhaps lie a word for water. However, this can be considered as nothing more than a conjecture.
1.Germany.Kalb(aha), 8th cent., now the Kohlb(ach).TheKulpa. Aust. Croatia.Hungary.Colapisant., affluent of the Drave.Spain.TheChelva. Prov. Valentia.Portugal.Callĭpusant., now the Sadao.Asia Minor.Calbisant. Caria.Calpasant. Bithynia.2.With the ending en.Scotland.TheKelvin. Stirling.
The Sansc.car, to move, Lat.curro, like some other words of the same sort, branches out into two different meanings—that of going fast, and that of going round. Hence the river-names from this root have in some cases the sense of rapidity, and in others of tortuousness; and these two senses are somewhat at variance with each other, because tortuousness is more generally connected with slowness. Separating the two meanings as well as I can, I bring in the following here.
1.Scotland.TheGarry. Perthshire.TheYarrow. Selkirkshire.2.With the ending en.England.Garrhuenusant., now theYare.France.GarumnaorGarunnaant. TheGaronne.TheGiron. Joins the Garonne.Greece.Geraniusant., andGeronant., two rivers of Elis, according to Strabo.3.With the ending es = Sansc. caras, swift, Lat. cursus, &c.France.TheGers. Joins the Garonne.Charesant., now theChiers.Germany.TheKersch. Joins the Neckar.Italy.TheGarza, by Brescia.Hungary.Gerăsusant., now theKoros.Asia Minor.TheCaresusof Homer in the plain of Troy.Syria.Cersusant., now the Merkez.
There appear to be several words in which the sense of violence or rapidity is brought out by the prepositionpra,pro,fro, in composition with a verb. Thus the Welshffre-uo, to gush, whenceffrau, a torrent, seems to correspond with the Sansc.pra-i, Lat.præ-eo, &c. Or perhaps we should take a verb with a stronger sense, sayyu, to gush, and presume a Sansc.pra-yu= Welshffre-uo. In the Albanianπρό, a torrent, corresponding with Welshffrau, there seems, however, no trace of a verb.
1.Wales.TheFraw, by Aberfraw.2.With the ending en.Scotland.TheFroon. Falls into L. Lomond.Russia.ThePronia.
The Welshffrydio, to stream, to gush, appears to be formed similarly from the prepositionfra, joined with the verbeddu, to press on, to go, corresponding with Sansc.it, Latinito, &c. Hence it would correspond with a Sansc.pra-it, Lat.præ-ito, &c. From the verb comes the appellativeffrwd, a torrent, corresponding with the Bohem.praud, of the same meaning.