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<div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">===========================================<br>L O W L A N D S - L - 31 July 2009 - Volume 05<br style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);"><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="mailto:lowlands@lowlands-l.net"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1249097413_0">lowlands@lowlands-l.net</span></a> - <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://lowlands-l.net/"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1249097413_1">http://lowlands-l.net/</span></a></span><br style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">
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===========================================<br></div><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">From: R. F. Hahn <<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="mailto:sassisch@yahoo.com">sassisch@yahoo.com</a>></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Subject: Names</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Hi again, Pablo and other Lowlanders!</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Here's
just a postscript to my earlier post suggesting that the name Degetow ~
Degetau may well be of Slavic origin. (See below.)</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">In German, the ending </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-ow</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> in Slavic-derived surnames and place names of Germany is always pronounced as though written simply </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-o</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">In Low Saxon dialects of the </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ou</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> type, this ending is pronounced </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-ou</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> as in Southern England English in "no" and "load". In Low Saxon dialects of the </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> type, it is pronounced </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> as in English "now" and "loud".* The name Degetow would therefore become Degetau in an </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> dialect.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">* Most </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ou</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> dialects are also </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ei</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> dialects (usually written </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">oo</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> and </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ee</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">, but </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ee</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> is pronounced as in English "day"). Most </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> dialects are also </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ai</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> dialects (where the latter is spelled </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ei</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> and is pronounced as in English "die"). My Elbe Estuary dialect has </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ou</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> and </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ei</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">; Hannelore's Mecklenburg dialect has </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> and </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">ai</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">; e.g. </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(bloum</i><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">) </i><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Bloom </i><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">~ Blaum</i><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> </i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">'flower', </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(schoul) School</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">~ Schaul </i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">'school', </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(ik dou) ik do ~ ik dau</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> 'I do', </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(steyn) Steen ~ Stein</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> 'stone', </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(deyl) Deel ~ Deil</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> 'deal', 'part', </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">(drey) dree ~ drei</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> 'three'.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">My educated guess is that Degetau is a West Slavic name rendered in an </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">au</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> type dialect of Low Saxon.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">I
am wondering if the name has anything to do with "tar", perhaps with
someone that produced tar or worked with it; cf. "tar": Polish </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">dziegieć</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">, Czech </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">dehet</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">, Russian </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">деготь</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> (</span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">degot'</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">); "tar ...": Czech </span><i style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">dehtový</i><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Regards,</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Reinhard/Ron</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Seattle, USA</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><div style="margin-left: 40px; color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
[...]<br><br>When
you get "German" names (personal or place names) from Eastern Holstein
and east of there chances are that they are of Slavic origin. In that
case, trying to etymologize them from a Germanic angle is a waste of
time.<br><br>Pablo,
many people, especially those outside Europe, are not aware of the fact
that just about the eastern half of what is now Germany (also areas in
Austria) used to be populated predominantly by people with West Slavic
language and culture. Most of those in Germany were Polabs and Sorbs,
and only some speakers of Sorbian remain in Lusatia, an area where
Germany meets Poland and the Czech Republic.<br><br>Polabs
lived as far west as around the borders of Hamburg. In the early days,
some Polabian tribes (and also Viking tribes) periodically attacked and
sacked Hamburg which was used as a Christian stronghold to conquer
Slavs and Vikings and make them Christians. This started pretty much
right after Charlemagne and his Franks beat down the Saxons and forced
them to become Christians. <br>
<br>As you have your eyes wander across a map into Holstein, especially
Eastern Holstein, you find many place names that were originally
Slavic, such as Eutin (< Utin), Preetz (< Poretzie < Porecie),
Mözen (< Mozinke < Mocinka), Grömitz (< *Gromice) and Lübeck
(< Lubice). Most places east of there used to be Slavic, also some
villages on the Danish island of Fyn. As Germanic colonization
progressed, Germanic-speaking settlements came to be built next to
Slavic ones, and eventually Slavic ones ended up "eaten up" by Germanic
ones. Germanic and Slavic cultures came to mix. Where Slavic culture
predominated (especially farther east), traces of it may still be found
nowadays, even though Slavic dialects became extinct and first Low
Saxon and finally German took over.<br><br>Especially
since the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, people from
surrounding areas and even quite far away moved to Hamburg in search of
work. Also, many went there to try their luck in seafaring.
Furthermore, lots and lots of Europeans, including East Europeans,
emigrated to the Americas and other overseas destinations via Hamburg.
Some did not make it onto ships and got stuck in Hamburg.<br><br>Interestingly,
there seems to have been a tradition among the (Degetows >) Degetaus
to move to Latin America, particularly to Mexico and Puerto Rico, where
some of them became quite prominent members of society.<br></div><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
�
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