LL-L "Names" 2002.02.20 (12) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 20.FEB.2002 (12) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: Andrys Onsman <Andrys.Onsman at CeLTS.monash.edu.au>
Subject: LL-L "Names" 2002.02.20 (05) [E]

From: Andrys Onsman
To: Helge, Reinhard and LLrs
Subject: Heligoland

A fictionalised account of the theory that Heligoland was a sacred isle
may be found in the first section of Theun de Vries' novel "Het Geslacht
Wiarda" in which the heroine, a devotee of Eostre, escapes the
encroaching, patriarchal Christian church by fleeing to an island to the
north that is sanctified even by the vikings. I can't attest to it
veracity, but it's a "thundering good" read. As far as I know it's only
available in Dutch.

Best
Andrys Onsman

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From: "Jan Strunk" <strunk at linguistics.ruhr-uni-bochum.de>
Subject: LL-L "Names" 2002.02.20 (05) [E]

Dear Lowlanders,

Ron wrote in responds to Helge:
>  I have often wondered about the same thing.  I have heard it said
> several times before that the name for Heligoland originally meant "Holy
Land"
> or "Sacred Land."  However, I am not totally convinced and have been
wondering
> if this _halleg_ ~ _hillig_ ~ _helig..._ might have something to do with
what
> in Low Saxon (Low German) is /heil/ _heel_, Dutch _heel_, W. Frisian
_hiel_,
> English "whole" -- thus *_hel-ig-_ referring to "contiguous land,"
"landmass"
> or "mainland" as seen in relation to the ocean or surrounding smaller
> islands.  As you know, Insular North Frisians tend to refer to their home
> islands as _luun_, _lönj_, etc., meaning 'land'.

Might this "halleg" be somehow connected to the modern Low Saxon
word (probably of Frisian origin ???) Hallig that is a small island in the
North Sea?

A quick look into my "Taschenwörterbuch des althochdeutschen Sprachschatzes"
(Köhler, 1994) produced the following maybe totally unrelated words:

ha:li "glatt, schlüpfrig" ---> slippery
ha:li: "Glätte, Steile, gefährliche abschüssige Stelle" steepness, dangerous
steep place (this might be appropriate for Helgoland)
ha:li:go (heimlich) ---> secret

I must admit that I'm not sure how possibles Frisian cognates
would have to look like.

If I find the time, I will search in a few Frisian dictionnaries at the
university tomorrow.

Gued gaon,

Jan Strunk
strunk at linguistics.ruhr-uni-bochum.de

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Names

Jan wrote above in connection with the Island of Hel(i)goland:

> ha:li:go (heimlich) ---> secret

= "Hidden" (= sometimes invisible)?

(1) The name has the "o" in it.

(2) Heligoland, a rocky island (now a fraction of its original size due to WW
II bombing), is situated in the North Sea, a fair distance from the mouth of
River Elbe in the German Bay.  Its red rocks tend to appear suddenly in the
(usual) mist when you approach it by boat.  (I can imagine that it seemed like
a really mysterious place to earlier people, because it can be quite a
"spiritual" experience to approach it even these days.)

(3) "Halligen" (sg. "Hallig") are tideflats (_Wattenmeer_, _Watt_) islands
(hence also _Watt(en)inseln_) in the North Sea off the Northern Friesland
coast.  In other words, they are separated from the mainland during high tide
and can be reached on foot or by horse and cart during low tide (which is why
the local Frisian dialects are closely related to those of the mainland rather
than to those of the true islands).  These tideflat islands are small and flat
and tend to be properly visible (i.e., prominent) only when the water around
them has receded.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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