[gothic-l] Heruli / Harii

[Troels Brandt <trbrandt@post9.tele.dk>]

Earlier at this list Andreas Schwarcz and George Knysh concluded that 
the attacking "Borani" in 267 AD could mean "people from the north" 
and that "Elouroi" could mean "people from the swamps" – both 
symbolizing people of other names.

The versions we use as the names for the attacking Heruls – Goths 
according to Procopius - are earlier translations from Germanic to 
Greek and Latin – maybe being influenced by a first misunderstanding 
of "Elouroy" - and being later "frozen" by writing. To a certain 
degree these versions could be independent of the development of the 
Germanic pronouncation of the name until the Heruls disappeared in 
the 6th century.

In the same way Tacitus' Harii is just a translation of a Germanic 
name which elsewhere is unknown to us though maybe deriving from 
HarjaR 

If we as an experiment assume that the Heruls were Harii mixed up 
with their neighbours Goths and maybe Alani at the Black Sea could 
then runic "ErilaR" (450-550 AD) and German/Latin "Herilungo-" (832 
AD) be a natural Gothic/Germanic development from "HarjaR"/"Harii"?

Would it make sense to add the diminutive suffix "-ila" to 
HarjaR/Harii? Is it correct that this suffix could mean "belonging 
to"/"part of"? Is the similar diminutive suffix "-ul" in any language?

Could Alanic/Iranian influence alternatively cause the "u" or "l" in 
Heruli?

Troels


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