LL-L "Slavonic connections" 2004.09.29 (09) [E]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 29.SEP.2004 (09) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Slavonic connections

I wrote:

> >  They called Lunenburg (LS Lüünborg, G Lüneburg) by the
> > name Glain (which I reconstruct as *_Glin_ /g-liin/ *'place by/toward
> > river
> > Lin'? > LS _Lüyne_ > _Lüün_, German _Lüne_).
>
> I take that back now that I realize that (Old Polab. glina >) _glaino_
means
> 'clay' (cf. Polish _glina_, Czech _hlína_, Russian глина _glina_).
>
> Also, I take back my claim that ModPol ai comes from ei and au comes from
> ou.  They seem to come from long "i" and "u" respectively.
>
> Furthermore, _bauk_ 'beech' clearly is not a Lowlands Saxon loan but is
> native Slavonic, is merely related.  It comes from _buk_, which is also
the
> word in most other Slavonic varieties.

< Proto-Slavonic *bukÑ

> I do, however, suspect that ModPol _daisko_ (< *diska) comes from Lowlands
> Saxon (_disch_), or better to say from Old Saxon _disk_ or even from an
> older version; cf. Germanic *_disko_ 'dish', 'bowl', 'wooden board (to eat
> from)'.  Medieval Polabian still called 'table' _stôl_ (cf. Pol. stol, Cz.
> stůl, Rus. стол stol).

What I find interesting is that Draveno-Polabian experienced the same sort
of diphthongization German and English experienced (/uu/ > /au/, /ii/ >
/ai/, e.g. Haus, Zeit, house, tide) but Lowlands Saxon (Low German) did not
experience (huus [hu:s], tyd [ti:t], and Scots did not participate in the
first of these shifts (hoose [hu:z]).

Did Draveno-Polabian undergo this change independently, or was it an arial
feature?  But DP was surrounded by LS, not by German.

Further information (again based on http://www.wizlaw.de/):

A few medieval DP words are known, among them the following, followed by the
ModDP cognate (c = [ts], * = hypothetical, reconstructed):

buk > bauk 'beech'
dušë > dausa 'soul'
glina > glain 'clay'
krivë > kraiwe 'bent', 'crooked'
mucha > maucho 'fly'
malina > molaino 'raspberry'
list > laist 'leaf'
*žid > zaid 'Jew'
lipa > laipo 'lime/linden tree'
*gruk > grauk 'peartree'
*Ljuchov > Ljauchüw 'Lüchow'
*Ljuce > Ljauci 'Hitzacker'
*Glin > Glain 'Lüneburg'
*Welc(h)us > Wilcaus 'Uelzen'
*(w)Ostrov > Wôstrüw 'Wüstrow' ('island')

But:
vip(ë)r > wiper 'pig'

Short /o/ (and LS /ou/?) became _ü_:
*bob > büb 'bean'
*slovo > slüwü 'word'
*Bog > Büg 'God'
*Božac > Büzac 'God'
*co > cü 'what'
gost > djüst 'guest'
*djelo > djolü 'work'
*grozni > grüzne 'ugly'
*jutro > jautrü 'morning'
*jablko > jobtjü 'apple'
*pod > püd 'under'
*teplo > teplü 'warm'
*žito > zaitü 'grain'

LS bouk > bükwoj 'book'
LS bruken > brükot 'require'
LS *brukhose > brük(h)oza 'britches'
LS versöyken > farsükat 'tempt', 'try'
LS voudern > füdrat 'to feed'
LS vouder > wüdar 'fodder'

But:
gora > djöra 'mountain'
*golumb > djölęb 'dove', 'pigeon'
*dost > döst 'enough'

Vowel fronting triggers palatalization of velars (/k/ -> tj, /g/ -> dj), as
you can see.  This is what we see happening in many (now mostly extinct)
Eastern Lowlands Saxon varaieties, still maintained in the Mennonite
(Plautdietsch) varieties (/k/ -> kj -> tj, /g/ -> j), all these being LS
varieties spoken in Slavonic language areas and with Slavonic substrates.

By the way, let's be accurate and fair: those regions of what is now Eastern
Germany and Northern Poland used to be inhabited by other people before the
arrival of the Slavs from the Balkans.  We do not know a lot about them but
do know that at one point in time some of them where speakers of now extinct
East Germanic varieties, among them Vandalic, (Langobardic =) Lombardic and
Burgundian.  Most of them later had places to go and things to do.  The
Vandals
(probably originating in Southern Scandinavia before moving to Northern
Poland, leaving their name for the "Wends," the Slavs), went on to vandalize
Spain and founded the realm of Andalusia (< Vandalusia), while others had
their way with the hapless Berbers and fellow-invader Romans of North
Africa.  The Langobards went to introduce long beards and high-end clothing
fashion in Milan and other parts of Italy's Lombardy.  The Burgundians (of
the Vistula river delta) decided to start a wine business in France.  All of
them did well for a while but lost their languages and finally their
erstwhile horrendous reputations in the process.  If they left the old
homelands unpopulated, I don't know.  If any of them remained they must have
been a sorry little bunch, for otherwise they would not have been
overpowered and/or been absorbed by those bands of Slavs that had escaped
slavery in the Greek-dominated parts of the Balkans and were so desperate
that they sought refuge in the inclement northern regions.

Here an updated list:


Mod.Polabian (meaning) < Saxon



badal (executioner) < bödel < bodel

baurai (farmers) < buern ~ buurn

bedÄ… (to beg) < beden

bek (brook) < beek

betje (a bit) < beetje

beze (angry) < böys’ < böse

bode (messenger) < baad’ < bade

bôla (bull) < bul < bulle

bör (farmer) < buer~buur

brükoza, brükhoza (britches) < brukhose

bükwoi, bükwa (book) < bouk

daisko (table) < disch < disk

dif (thief) < deyv

dik (dike) < dyk

doga (is suitable) < dougt

doro (gate) < door < dore

fader (father) < vader

farsükat (to tempt, try) < versöyken

füdrat, füdroje (to feed) < voudern

glozo (glass) < glass

grensa (boundary) < grenss(e) (< Slav. granica)

grobo (ditch) < graben ~ graven

gröne ~ grüne (green) < gröyn < gröyne

growene (gray) < grau < grouvene

güldan (guilder) < gülden

haimôn (August) < haymaand ~ hoymaand

ingelse (English) < ingelsch

ja (yes) < ja

Jöstrai, Jostroi (Easter) < Oostern

kachil (tile) < kachel

kalandar (calendar) < kalenner < kalender

kÄ…ta (edge) < kant < kante

keko (kitchen) < köken

kloga (complaint) < klaag’ < klage

klore (clear) < klaar

knecht (farmhand) < knecht

knöp (button) < knop

kolaw (cabbage) < kaal

komer (chamber) < kamer

komot (to come) < kamen

korto (card) < kaart < kaarte

krÄ…s (wreath) < kranss

krÄ…s (wreath) < kranss

krich (war) < kryg (< German _Krieg_)

krijot (to get) < krygen

krom (wares, stuff) < kraam

kuele (sphere, ball) < kugel < kugele

lagir (camp) < lager

lidjot (to suffer) < lyden

lik (luck) < lük

ljaibe (nice, lovely) < leyv’ < leyve ~ leybe

lodot (to load) < laden

mocht (might, power) < magt, macht

môn (month) < maand

narra (fool) < nar < narre

nober (neighbor) < naver ~ naber

omar (hammer) < hammer

opam (I hope) < ik höyp < houp

opo (ape, monkey) < aap < ape

pantjik (eggy pancake) < pankouken

pątjüste, pantjüst (Whitsunday, Pentecost) < pingsten

paun (pound) < pun(d)

rikote (rich) < ryk < ryke

rod (council) < raad

salot (salad) < salaad

Å¡ikot (to send) < schikken

sipjaw (soap) < seyp < seype

smada (smith) < smeyd

smakoje (tastes) < smakt

smutje (pretty) < smuk < smukke

snider (tailor) < snyder

snitjer (carpenter) < snitjer

spelman (musician) < speelman

spinna (cupboard, locker) < spind

stalja (stall) < stal

stalja (stall) < stal

staul (chair) < stoul

staul (chair, stool) < stoul

stroto (street) < straat < strate

swaina (swine, pig) < swyn

šwainü (pig) < swyn

taid (time) < tyd

tjaizar (emperor) < kayser

tjarl (guy, man) < karl

tjester (sexton) < köster

toblac (wizard) < töyverer ~ töyberer < touverer ~ touberer

torn (tower) < torn

wader (father) < vader

wainja môn (October) < Wynmaand

wedrü (weather) < weder ~ wedder

worstjü (sausage) < wost < worst


Tadah! -- _dwarnaicja_ ‘(front) room’ > LS _döönss_.

And, for the Slavonic speakers and specialists among you, Draveno-Polabian
has _oj_ where other Slavonic varieties have _y_ (Ñ‹).  Another factoid for
those folks: w- before o- and u- seems to have been an areal feature, also
found in both Sorbian languages; e.g. DP wokno (window, Sorb: wokno, Pol:
okno, Cz: okno), wauchjü (ear, Sorb: wucho, Pol: ucho, Cz: ucho).

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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