[gothic-l] Name of the Semnones

[Bertil Häggman]

Frank,

There exist several etymologies for Semnones:

1) From Germanic *sebno (something like "clan-mates"
    German Sippe).

2) Schoenfeld connected it with Gothic Samana, 'together'.

3) Muellenhoff noted Old Saxon simo, 'bond'.

Ther can in my humble opinion be no connection
to the Suiones. There are even doubts that Suiones
refer to the Svear. It seems odd that Tacitus
can provide so many details on a people like
the Svear livin so fare from the limes.

Germanically

Bertil

> I have a linguistic question here . . .  I'm trying to figure out an East-
> (or West, for that matter) Germanic reconstruction for the name Tacitus
> gives as the "Semnones."  I was thinking, that since he uses "Suiones" for
> the Swedes, and the ON name is Svear, that the E. Germanic (Gothic)
> equivalent would be Sve()as (?)--though there is probably some kind of
> intervocalic component that I'm missing.
>
> I'm also latiniacally challenged, but the -ones ending sames to be the
> entire Latinate inflection, correct?  Would that make the stem Semn- or
> Semn(j)/(w) (+ inflection)?



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