[gothic-l] Re: Marcomannic Challenge in _Gladiator_

[jdm314 at AOL.COM]

In a message dated 6/29/2000 2:57:17 AM Central Daylight Time, 
mcarver at csulb.edu writes:

<< Very true. I would wonder about the word "hyde" which doesnt seem to fit
 marcomannic dialect, unless i am mistaken. Can it not rather be a 
demonstrative
 perhaps, such as "hita" i.e. this? or hi(er) da(s) "this" or hi(e) "her,
 it" + da, denn "then, so". It would help to see the manuscript for the
 film, I think, and maybe know who the consultant was for marcomannic in
 the film.
 
 Matþaius >>

    No, it does not look at all like Marcomannic to me (and before anyone 
asks, I'm basing this on preconceived notions, not on any actual attested 
Marcomannic--I would just assume it would be closer to Proto-Germanic and 
hense Gothic than to a Scandinavian tongue), but it seems more likely they 
arbitrarily used Scandinavian (or non-arbitrarily based on the reputation of 
Icelandic for conservatveness) then that they meant somethign more 
authentically Marcomannic.
    Avery, my aforementioned friend, when he heard my Gothic translation (and 
sorry about that Sokjist, I should have consulted my grammars as soon as I 
got home, as I knew I was guessing) insisted that that was plausibly close, 
and that that could be what the cheiftain said, on the basis that if a Dane 
were to be given "Sokeis thu nu haubith?" it would probably come out as "Suk 
thu nu hyde?". I don't know.
    As for the authenticness of beheading the emissary... well that's beyond 
the scope of this list, but suffice it to say that in the context of the 
movie it made sense. The tribe has been backed into a corner, they've all but 
lost, the Romans asked for their surrender, and this is their way of saying 
the "mot de Cambronne" to use the French expression!


-IUSTEINUS

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