LL-L "Etymology" 2005.03.03 (02) [E]

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From: heather rendall <HeatherRendall at compuserve.com>
Subject: LL-L "Etymology" 2005.02.28 (05) [E]


re the origin of 'ley'
from:  Ben Bloomgren <ben.bloomgren at asu.edu>

>>From the Dictionary of English Place Names : Ekwall 1980
OE leah  /lea/leage   >> OHG   loh = grove  LG   loh = thin wood   Latin
lucus = grove

Original meaning = an open place in a wood, a part of a wood with scattered
trees so that grass can grow
Meaning 1= glade, natural clearing in a wood
Meaning 2 = (specialised) meadow, pasture
Meaning 3 = open land used as arable
Meaning 4 = wood
Also commonly used as 'grove' for heathen worship
Names ending in 'leah' are most common in old woodland districts
It is extremely common as a second element '-ley'  also '-leigh',
occasionally 'le'

re Barnesley
This spelling is not given
Barnsley   in West Yorkshire     Berneslai int he Domesday book   from
Beorn's Leah

Hope this helps

Heather


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

Thanks for that, Heather.  I find it rather interesting.  I did know that it
has something to do with "grove" and a "clearing" and was often connected
"heathen" worship.  However, I hadn't known the details.

So, going by the descriptions, perhaps it can be said that originally it
denoted "glade," later to be extended to "clearing (for settlements,
agriculture, etc.)."  What do you think?  Incidentally, Modern German
_Lichtung_ (a place onto which sunlight shines) might cover the original
meaning, at later stages also _Rodung_ (a place cleared of trees by humans).

Given the fact that in the olden days most of Northern Europe was covered by
dense natural woods (much to the chagrin of would-be Roman occupiers), it
should come as no surprise that pre-Christian Celts, Germans and Slavs
considered such places magical, even sacred.  Anyone who has had the
pleasure of wandering through a dark first-growth forest and coming upon an
original glade in which beams of sunlight stream onto moss or grass will be
able to relate to the feeling of spiritual awe our ancestors must have
experienced.

Old (High) German: lôh 'glade' (e.g., MG _Lohe_ 'blaze', 'flame')
Old Saxon: lôga 'blaze* vs lôh (~ lâ(h)?) 'glade'
Old Frisian: loga 'blaze*
Old English: lîeg 'blaze'* vs lêah 'glade'
Old Norse: leygr, logi 'blaze'
< Germanic: laugi(z) 'blaze' vs lauha(z) 'glade'
< Indo-European: leuk- 'to shine', 'to blaze', 'to flicker'

* not to be confused with _lôch_ ~ _lôg_ '(meeting) place' (c.f., OG luog,
OE lôg, Lat. locus 'place', Sanskrit लोक _loka_ 'earthly place' > 'world'
etc. < IE _legh-_ 'to lie down' (refl.), 'to settle', 'to situate oneself')

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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