[gothic-l] GAITA -from- (GAITS)

[F. Ximeneiks - (F. E. Ximenez)]

Greetings All,

I just found an interesting entry in the [ Galician language ]
concerning the "Gaita" (Spanish Bagpipes). An ancient and favorite
instrument (especially) in the Celtic region of Spain (Asturias and
Galicia). It states:
"L’aniciu del términu gaita ye inciertu: según Corominas pue venir del
góticu “gaits” , que quier dicir cabra, pola piel de que ta fecha el
fuelle."

TRANSLATION:
The meaning of the term 'gaita' is uncertain. According to Corominas the
term may be of 'Gothic' origin and derived from the Gothic word <<
GAITS>> meaning goat,  from which the bellows is made.

Interestingly, I did a bit of research and the term Gaita seems to be
peculiar to the languages of Galicia, Asturias and Castile. The first
two languages are the languages spoken in the northern highlands where
the Visigoths retreated after the defeat at Guadalete in 711. The other
language, Castilian is the language whence comes modern Spanish, to
which one may still formally refer as Castilian. Castile was the
eventual area of expansion after the Visigothic nobles that were in
Asturias when the Urbs Regia was at Oviedo pushed southward taking back
the lands of the former Visigothic kingdom of Toledo. Thus, Castile
became the new frontier and its court was composed of the descendants of
the Visigothic nobles that originally spearheaded the Reconquest. The
latter is quite evident in the genealogical pedigrees of visigothic
nobles; as demonstrated by the following link:

http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~cousin/html/d0001/g0000156.html#I8634

(For example; once there, search for [Alfonso I "el Católico" Pérez de
Asturias] or another Visigoth, then follow the genealogies to more
recent times).
There are also better sites for this sort of thing but one has to pay to
use them.

The Castillian language which evolved from regional dialects in the area
of Castile, was still in its adolescence (if I may) at about the same
time that the descendants of the Visigothic nobles reconquered the same
area in about the late X Century. (Menendez Pidál) believes that
Castilian is rather revolutionary in contrast to the other languages and
dialects of Spain in that it broke away from Latin more rapidly since
the Visigoths adopted Castilian and tended towards an oral tradition,
rather than a literary one in making and administering laws and
judgments.
The other languages of Spain (as well as other pertinent languages) use
quite different terms (not Gaita) to refer to the instrument in
question:
The Romans -  tibia utricularis
In Italy - cornamuse
In France - mussette, cornamuse and biniou.
In Catalonia - sac de gemecs, o sacu de xemíos.



Since it is quite evident that I am not a linguist, I am deferring this
matter to those of you on the list who might enlighten us and/or who are
interested in his matter.

I suppose my question is:
Might the latter be a plausible etymology?

Cheers,
Friþunanþs (F. Ximénez.)


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