gestures and signs

[Barbara Need]

>_sign of the cross_ (OED: c1290).  Is there any indication of what
>Anglo-Saxons called it?
>
>Regards,
>David
>
>barnhart at highlands.com

According to _A Thesaurus of Old English_

bletsung, cristelmae:l, cru:c, ha:lig ro:de ta:cen, ro:d, ro:de tq:cen

to 'make the sign of the cross" was

(ge)bletsian, (ge)mercian mid ... ro:de, (ge)segnian

My copy of Clark-Hall _A concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary_ translates
these back into ModEng as

'consecration, blessing, benediction, favor of God'; [=
cri:stesmae:l] 'Christ's mark, the cross'; 'cross', [written
rodetacen] 'holy sign of the cross'; 'sign of the cross'

'consecrate, ordain, bless, give thanks, adore, extol, sign with the
cross, pronounce or make happy'; [= mearcian] 'mark with ... cross',
'to make the sign of the cross, cross oneself, consecrate, bless'

It also gives wyrcan cristesmael for 'to make the sign of the cross'.

Barbara Need
UChicago--Linguistics