Dis ibu ion o Lexical Double s
in The Complayn o Sco land
Mª Nie es Rod íguez Ledesma
UNIVERSIDAD DE SEVILLA
Vocabula y has unde gone a adical ans o ma ion h oughou he his o y o he English langua-
ge: whe eas Old English akes e y ew bo owings om o he languages and makes use o i s own
esou ces o exp ess new concep s, ei he by changing he meaning o wo ds al eady exis ing in
he language (hell “hidden place” comes o mean “home o de ils and o damned souls a e dea h” wi h
he a i al o Ch is iani y) o by c ea ing compounds om na i e elemen s (p ¯ines “ ini y”, b¯oc œ
“li e a u e”), om Middle English onwa ds loanwo ds a e bo owed in an indisc imina e way, especially
om F ench and La in, many o which exp ess concep s ha we e exp essed be o e by means o na i e
ocabula y. The esul s a e lexical double s such as b o he hood/ a e ni y, cold/gelid, a he ly/pa e nal,
oo /pedal, hea y/co dial, hin/ enuous, whose elemen s a e now used as s ylis ic a ian s, depending
on he egis e and he deg ee o o mali y.
This pape s udies he dis ibu ion o some double s in The Complayn o Sco land, a li e a y wo k
in p ose w i en in 1549 by Robe Wedde bu n, acco ding o S ewa (1979), and appa en ly p in ed in
F ance, p obably Pa is. Modelled on Cha ie ’s Quad ilogue In ec i , The Complayn is ull o axioms,
exempla, sen en iae, and p o e bs aken om he Bible and om classical sou ces (A is o le, Cice o,
Pliny, among o he s), and i makes use o a plain s yle, acco ding o he au ho , “ o i hoch i noch
necessai il he a di ande la di his ac ei i h exquisi e e mis, quhilkis a noch daly si , bo a he
i he si domes ic sco is langage, mais in elligibil o he lga e pepil” (1979:13).
The mos explici e e ence o he dis ibu ion o lexical double s in Middle Sco s is made by Ai ken,
who poin s ou :
ha knaw and pas, o example, may ha e unc ioned as he li e a y “ ansla ions” o he e nacula
ken and gang o ga, ha he h ee membe s o he se hound, dog and yke had qui e di e en o e -
ones, ha i ems like cumme ( emale c ony), gully (la ge kni e), juggis (lees o d ink), lug, bony
(bonny), scunne , as well as some o he s which a e eco ded only in comic e se, such as gane ( ace),
ky e (belly), la ba (impo en ), lounge and quei , had qui e es ic ed sphe es o use a he opposi-
e pole om ha o many o he “exquisi e e mis quhilkis a noch daly si ..., d euyn o a he o
say mai o maly euyn a la ing” (Compl. 16).
(Ai ken 1971:178)
Th ee o he double s men ioned by Ai ken occu in The Complayn : knau/ken, pas/gang, ga, and
e e/lug, all o which a e made up o a bo owing, F ench in he case o pas and Scandina ian in he o he
wo1, and a na i e wo d. The Scandina ian elemen in Sco s is conside able, since no only a e he e
qui e a numbe o bo owings om ha language, bu many o hem ha e become pa o he co e oca-
bula y, which is no he case wi h hose aken om F ench2. Thus, his is he o igin o he causa i e e b
ga and he auxilia y ma(u)n (“mus ”), as well as ha o he p eposi ions ill, a, and lyik (<lík ) which,
la e on, will be adop ed by English, al hough wi h some di e ences. Ano he ea u e dis inguishing
Scandina ian and F ench bo owings is ha whe eas he o me , acco ding o Ai ken, occu in mo e
in o mal and colloquial egis e s han hei na i e coun e pa s, he la e a e ypical o o mal and li e-
a y s yles.
In his pape I s udy he dis ibu ion o he double s knau/ken3, pas/gang, ga, and e e/lug in The
Complayn . My aim is o suppo o o e u e Ai ken’s sugges ion ha he elemen s o hese pai s coe-
xis ed as s ylis ic a ian s in Middle Sco s. In e e y case, I begin by p o iding a sho accoun o he his-
o y o hese e ms in English and, mo e speci ically, in Sco s. The in o ma ion has been aken om The
Ox o d English Dic iona y and A Dic iona y o he Olde Sco ish Tongue4
1. KNAW/KEN
Wi h ega d o he i s double , know (and i s no he n coun e pa knaw) is a common Teu onic
and A yan e b, de i ed om he same oo (gen-, gon-, gn-) as can and ken. Wi h (
ζ
e)cnawan as i s Old
English ances o , know is well es ablished in all i s main senses by 1200, and since hen has b oadened
i s seman ic ield and has aken o e he o iginal e i o y o he e bs wi and can, so ha his English
e b alone co esponds o La in n¯o isse, co-gn¯osce e and sc¯i e, and o Spanish conoce and sabe . Ken,
also a common Teu onic e b, o iginally had a causa i e meaning, “ o cause o know”, al hough a an
ea ly s age in all hese languages i acqui ed he sense “ o know”, in he case o English p obably in luen-
ced by No se, whe e bo h meanings we e in ea ly use.
Acco ding o OED, i is his e b, ken, which is used in Sco land wi h he sense “ o know”, a e
ha ing supplan ed knaw. DOST, howe e , ega ds hem as p ac ically synonymous in ha sense, and has
examples o bo h in iden ical cons uc ions: a) wi h a noun ph ase as di ec objec and he sense
“( e)conoce ”, as in: “Bo , o ha men suld noch him ken, He suld a man ill ha , ald and ba ”; “He knew
hy e noch ”; b) wi h nominal clauses as di ec objec and he sense “sabe ”, as in: “Kennand ha hai na
kid wa e”; “Knawand ha Eu agen[e]a... Is spousi o he kinge o hewyn”; “Mych nane ken quha had
ony a an age”; “Quha hu o haill was, nane mich knaw”.
In The Complayn , knau is he dominan e b, wi h o y-six examples, as agains hi een ins ances
o ken. These da a seem o con i m Ai ken’s hypo hesis ha knau is he li e a y “ ansla ion” o ken,
dominan , he e o e, in ex s w i en in a o mal s yle, such as The Complayn .
The si ua ion in his wo k is, howe e , mo e complex, since ele en ou o he hi een ins ances o ken
selec a noun ph ase as di ec objec and ha e he sense “( e)conoce ”. The ollowing examples illus a e
his cons uc ion: “ hai ald haue clai myskend i , be asone ha i as sa mekil al i a he y s assone”
(p.55); “ o g an hem g ace o ken hem sel is, o as lang as hai ken noch hem sel is hai sal neuy ken
god” (p.102); “i am leukand gy i can ynd my a he s ha dyn pan, amang hi dede mennis banis bo i can
noch ken i amang hem” (p.121). The only excep ions o his ule a e: “sen god kennis ha
ζ
ou ha is a
euil, and ha men kennis ha
ζ
ou e kis a euyl” (p.135), whe e ken akes a nominal clause and means
“sabe ”.
As agains he syn ac ic-seman ic specializa ion o ken, knaw is no es ic ed in The Complayn o
Mª NIEVES RODRÍGUEZ LEDESMA148
any pa icula cons uc ion. The ollowing examples illus a e he di e en nominal clauses which his
e b akes in his wo k in he sense “sabe ”: “ he pepil knauis hi mu a ions o be o e i e” (p.17); “he
ha ynis ane hing, and syne knauis noch quhai i is” (p.66); “
ζ
e knau quhou hai and he e o bea s
hes beene
ζ
ou ald mo al enemes” (p.68); “and sen
ζ
e knau ha god hes schauen sic auoi ” (p.71);
“noch ane o
ζ
ou knauis quha ane hi sais” (p.110); “be he quhilk
ζ
e may knau quha is ane ilaine”
(p.114).
Knau also appea s in The Complayn in hose cons uc ions which a e ypical o ken, ha is, wi h
noun ph ases as di ec objec and he sense “( e)conoce ”, as he ollowing examples illus a e: “he pos-
sessis hi pu e pepil, ha knauis his gudnes, i h he samyn eches, ha he hes ane a hem, ha hes
a ogan ly miskanuen hym” (p.15); “ he is noch mony ha knauis he cause o hi mu a ions” (p.17);
“his au ul scu ge o ape and ex e mina ione sal change in ane ade ly co ec ione sa ha e il knau his
mages e” (p.20); “sum men ha knauis he sec e o sco land” (p.87).
Ai ken’s sugges ion ha knaw is he li e a y “ ansla ion” o ken does no apply, he e o e, o The
Complayn , wich has examples o bo h. On he o he hand, hese o ms a e no me ely synonyms in his
wo k, bu he e a e syn ac ic and seman ic ac o s go e ning hei usage. Thus, ken is he ma ked o m in The
Complayn , being es ic ed o hose colloca ions which know o iginally had, whe eas knau is he unma ked
e m, used no only in hese cons uc ions, bu also in hose which had p e iously been exclusi e o he e b
wi .
2. PAS/GANG, GA
Wi h ega d o he second double , go (and i s no he n coun e pa ga) is a de ec i e e b common
o he Teu onic languages, seman ically equi alen o La in i e, which o iginally was also used in he
sense “ o go on oo , o walk”. Gang, om Old English gangan, only su i es in no he n dialec s. In
Sco s his e b is chie ly used in he in ini i e, p esen pa iciple and p esen ense; om he syn ac ic-
seman ic poin o iew, howe e , i is p ac ically synonymous wi h ga, bo h in he senses “ o go” and “ o
go on oo , o walk”.
Pas, on he o he hand, is a bo owing om F ench passe . O iginally i mean “ o s ep, pace, walk”,
bu al eady in he 11 h cen u y in Old F ench i had come o deno e p og ession o mo emen om one
place o ano he . In English, pass has become he mos gene al e b o exp ess onwa d mo ion; in Sco s,
howe e , in spi e o i s being e y common in ha sense, i seems o be es ic ed o li e a y and o mal
egis e s.
In The Complayn , pas is la gely he dominan e b, wi h 131 occu ences, as agains six examples
o gang and nine o ga/go. In his wo k, howe e , he e nacula o ms ha e no me ely been supplan-
ed by hei supposed li e a y “ ansla ion” pas, bu hey ha e specialized seman ically. Thus, gang is only
used in he in ini i e and in he sense “ o go on oo , o walk”, as he ollowing examples illus a e:
“quhen e a i i o gang on ou e ei , e a solis o seik ho se o yde” (p.27); “quha cam a his com-
mand, in ane cha io be cause he my h no hi yde no gang be cause he as dec epi o aige” (p.79);
“he ga he b ui gang ha hai p esone is hed eschaipi ”5(p.91); “ he
ζ
ong pa an ald noch gang euyn
u h bo a he sche
ζ
eid c uki bakua and on syd.... quod sche mo he , i can noch gang o my auen
na u as hou biddis me bo noch heles, ald hou gang u h ych be o me, han i sal ley n o ollou
hy u s eppis” (p.126). To exp ess his meaning (“ o go on oo , o walk”) in o he enses, he o ms o
DISTRIBUTION OF LEXICAL DOUBLETS IN THE COMPLAYNT OF SCOTLAND 149
he e b ga/go a e used, as in: “none o hem suld ak he e ec ione quhil hai hed gone ande un he
yme o i e o sex hou is” (p.7); “sche
ζ
eid c uki bakua and on syd”6(p.126).
Apa om eplacing gang in he sense “ o go on oo , o walk”, ga/go is used once in he cons uc ion
SV wi h he meaning “ o go away” [“ han quhen he gois, al he leaue ynnis & ollouis hym” (p.110)], and on
ano he occasion i unc ions as an a ibu i e e b and akes a subjec complemen [“al musing o me uellis
amys he i gone” (p.51)]. In he emaining examples, ga/go akes an ad e bial and has he sense “go”, being
synonymous, he e o e, wi h pas: “ he is ane hi ci cle in he spe e calli me idian he quhilk gais be uix
he ua polis ych abu e ou hede” (p.39); “ he sune ci cui is and gais abou he ei d” (p.40); “sal i go i h
ζ
ou o umbelo ay ” (p.51); “O igno an abusi ande dissai ul pepil, gone by he pa h aye o e eouse
knaulage” (p.56).
As agains he seman ic specializa ion o he e nacula o ms gang and ga/go, pas is he mos gene al
e b in The Complayn o exp ess mo ion, being equi alen o Spanish “i ” and “pasa ”. The ollowing
examples illus a e he di e en cons uc ions in which his e b occu s: a) SVA: “ he sou de o engeance
sal noch pas h ouch
ζ
ou cun e” (p.21); “quhen he sune cas is ou e g i e hey : e pas ndi he mb e
o he schaddou” (p.27); “Iudas machabeus pas a ho he mon anis and dese is” (p.60); “ he as ua pas-
sagis o pas be uix he omans camp and luce e” (p.78); b) SV + in ini i e: “ si o o isye he eildis o
ak he ec ea ione, ande o pas il houn ing” (p.10); “le he glo ius s ai o a henes, & pas o emane in
ane li il illage” (p.35); “sche ald pas o mak ey e con a e hiope” (p.63); c) SV: “he pas and pe u bi al
g eice” (p.63); “ han i pas and i sleu hym” (p.94); d) SVO, wi h he noun ph ase which unc ions as objec
exp essing ei he place7o ime: “ he iugemen o gode... is ane p o ound onknauen deipnes, he quhilk
passis humaine ingyne” (p.17); “ hou passis he limi is o bay h hi documen is” (p.102); “ o pas he yme
quhil euyn” (p.49).
As i happened in he p e ious case, he e o e, bo h he e nacula o ms gang, ga and hei suppo-
sed li e a y “ ansla ion” pas occu in The Complayn , and hei dis ibu ion depends on syn ac ic and
seman ic c i e ia. The F ench e m, pas, is he mos gene al e b o exp ess mo ion in his wo k, being
used in a wide ange o cons uc ions wi h he meanings “i ”, “pasa ”, whe eas he e nacula o ms, and
especially gang, ha e specialized in he sense “ o go on oo , o walk”.
3. ERE/LUG
Wi h ega d o he las double , lug as a synonym o e e is i s used ea ly in he 16 h cen u y, and in
colloquial Sco s i has supplan ed he e nacula o m, which is now es ic ed o a ew colloca ions. The
p ima y meaning o he Scandina ian noun was “some hing ha can be pulled o laid hold o , an appen-
dage”, and i is possible ha i was i s used o e e o he lap o a cap o a bonne , since his is he
sense o he ea lies a es ed examples, and ha , by a la e colloquial sense- ans e ence, i came o deno-
e “ea ”. Al e na i ely, and acco ding o DOST, he sense “ea ” “may ha e exis ed ea lie bu emained
un eco ded as a pu ely colloquial use”. In any case, lug is no mally used in Sco s in he sense “ he ex e -
nal ea ” (Spanish “o eja”), whe eas in he sense “ he ea as o gan o hea ing” (Spanish “oído”) i is
uncommon and la e; e e, howe e , is used in bo h senses h oughou Olde and Middle Sco s.
Wi h ega d o he usage o his double in The Complayn , Ai ken’s sugges ion ha lug, oge he
wi h o he e ms, “had qui e es ic ed sphe es o use a he opposi e pole om ha o many o he
“exquisi e e mis quhilkis a noch daly si ..., d euyn o a he o say mai o maly euyn a la ing”
(1971:178) is no ue o his wo k, which has wo ins ances o his noun.
Mª NIEVES RODRÍGUEZ LEDESMA150
As wi h he p e ious double s, howe e , lug and e e a e no synonyms in The Complayn , bu each
has specialized seman ically. Lug is used in he sense “ea lap”, as in he example “euy ie scheiphi d hed
ane ho ne spune in he lug o he e bone ” (p.34), and in he sense “ he ex e nal ea ” (Spanish “o eja”),
as in “ he ail quhou kyng midas ga ua asse luggis on his hede be cause o his aue eis” (p.50).
E e, on he o he hand, means “ he ea as o gan o hea ing” (Spanish “oído”), as he ollowing exam-
ples illus a e: “no his ey is a noch s oppi , bo he maye hei
ζ
ou” (p.59); “ he damysele ha he is and
gi is ey is o he amou us pe suasions o desolu
ζ
ong men” (p.85); “i il noch gy ey is o hy excusa ions
no o hy pu ga ions” (p.108); “i e use o gy ey is o audiens o hy accusa ions con a hy ua b e hi ”
(p.109).
CONCLUSIONS
The esul s ob ained om he s udy o he dis ibu ion o hese lexical double s in The Complayn o
Sco land do no suppo Ai ken’s sugges ion ha knau and pas unc ioned in Middle Sco s as he li e-
a y “ ansla ions” o he e nacula ken and gang, ga espec i ely, since bo h se s o o ms occu in his
wo k. The o me , ne e heless, a e dominan in The Complayn , which p o es ha hey a e ypical o
li e a y and o mal egis e s. The elemen s o hese double s a e no , howe e , me ely synonyms in his
wo k, bu he e a e syn ac ic and seman ic ac o s go e ning hei usage.
On he o he hand, he occu ence in The Complayn o he e m lug which, acco ding o Ai ken, is
es ic ed o colloquial egis e s, is a p oo o he plain and in elligible language which he au ho s a es
in he p ologue o ha e used h oughou his wo k, and u ns, hus, his excuse o his “ba bi ag es e -
mis” in o some hing o he han a me e li e a y de ice.
NOTES
1Ken has been ega ded as a Scandina ian bo owing since, al hough he e b cennan exis s in Old English. i did
no ha e he sense “ o know”, which i seems o ha e aken om No se.
2Scandina ian in luence is also appa en in he p e e ence o Sco s and no he n dialec s o he ela plosi es /k, g/
in con as wi h he pala al a ica es / , d
ζ
/ o S anda d English, which esul s in double s such as Ki k/chu ch,
Kis /ches , b eeks/b eeches, sic/such, ilk/each, quhilk/which, b ig/b idge, ig/ idge, e c.
3The compounds mysknaw/mysken ha e also been aken in o accoun .
4Th oughou he es o his pape , hese dic iona ies will be e e ed o as OED and DOST espec i ely.
5In his colloca ion, Spanish does no use he e bs “anda ” o “camina ”, bu “co e ”: “hizo co e el umo de que
es os p isione os habían escapado”.
6Ga/go being a de ec i e e b, i s pas ense was supplied in OE by eode, which became in ME
ζ
ede, yede, yode.
These o ms died ou in he sou h in he i een h cen u y, and we e supe seded by wen , he pas ense o wend.
In Sco s wen and
ζ
ede /o
ζ
eid) we e used in his unc ion down o he la e pa o he six een h cen u y, when
hey we e eplaced by gaed, a new o ma ion on he p esen -s em, which i s appea ed in he Banna yne MS. o
1568.
7In his case i is ansla ed in o Spanish as “sob epasa , excede ”.
DISTRIBUTION OF LEXICAL DOUBLETS IN THE COMPLAYNT OF SCOTLAND 151

WORKS CITED
Ai ken, A.J. 1971: “Va ia ion and Va ie y in W i en Middle Sco s.” In Ai ken, A.J., McIn osh, A. & Pálsson, H. eds.
Edinbu gh S udies in English and Sco s. London, Longman. 177-209.
C aigie, William & Ai ken, A.J. eds. 1931- : A Dic iona y o he Olde Sco ish Tongue om he Twel h Cen u y o
he End o he Se en een h, Founded on he Collec ions o Si William A. C aigie. 7 ols. o da e. Chicago, U o
Chicago P; London, Ox o d UP.
Simpson, J.A. & Weine , E.S.C. eds. 1989: The Ox o d English Dic iona y. Ox o d, Cla endon.
S ewa , A.M. ed. 1979: The Complayn o Sco land. Edinbu gh, The Sco ish Tex Socie y.
Mª NIEVES RODRÍGUEZ LEDESMA152