LL-L: "Etymology" (was "Names") LOWLANDS-L, 23.AUG.2001 (01) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 23.AUG.2001 (01) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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 A=Afrikaans, Ap=Appalachian, D=Dutch, E=English, F=Frisian, L=Limburgish
 LS=Low Saxon (Low German), S=Scots, Sh=Shetlandic, Z=Zeelandic (Zeeuws)
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From: "Mathieu. van Woerkom" <Mathieu.vanWoerkom at student.kun.nl>
Subject: names

The Alnus Glutinosa:

Afrikaans:      els(boom)
Dutch:          elzeboom, els
Low Saxon (NL): els
Low Saxon (D):  Eller
German:         Erle
Scots:          aller
English:        alder

Frisian:        els
Limburgisch:    aels

Groet,
Mathieu
(mathieu.vanwoerkom at student.kun.nl)

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Etymology

Thanks for the additional information, Mathieu.

I wonder if Modern English _alder_ is natively derived (from an unwritten
Old English dialect) or if some Scandinavian influence is involved, more
specifically, where the /d/ comes from.

The recorded Old English names for this tree:
alor
aler
(not *_aldor_ or *_alder_)

Cf. Middle Low Saxon _aller_ > Modern Low Saxon (Low German) _Eller_

Modern Scots has, predictably, _aller_.  It also has _arn_ and _alrone_ for
the same tree, derived from an alternative name: Middle English _alloren_ <
Old English _ælren_.

Old Norse: _ölr_ >
Modern Islandic: elri, elritré
Norwegian (both languages): _older_ (with article _oldra_ ~ _oldren_, pl.
_oldrer_)
Swedish: al
Danish: el, elletræ

So I wonder if Old Norwegian influence is an issue here, also in the case
of Scots _alrone_ (considering Norwegian _oldren_ 'the alder').

Incidentally, Modern Standard German _Erle_ contains metathesis if /lr/ (>
/rl/), or more preceisely /lir/ > /ril/, Old High German having older
original _elira_ and more recent methathesized _erila_.

Finally, I wonder why Dutch and others have the final /s/ (_els_ etc.), if
it is one of the rare reflexes of ancient -r ~ -z.  Also, I kind of suspect
that _els_ in Henry's Low Saxon dialect (on the Netherlands side of the
border) is a Dutch loan, considering that Middle Low Saxon (Middle Low
German) has _aller_ and the modern dialects I am familiar with on the
German side have _Eller_.

Apparently, the Indo-European roots are *_al-_ (~ *_el-_).
Cf. Latin _alnus_, French _aulne_, Spanish _aliso_, Lithuanian _alksnis_,
Latvian _alksnis_, Old Prussian *_aliskâns_, Elbing Prussian _alskande_ (~
_abskande_), Sudovian Prussian _alskandis_, Polish _olcha_, Russian
_ol'khá_.

Thanks for thinking about it.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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