Old Icelandic “gná”

VÁCLAV BLAŽEK Masaryk University Fields of research: Indo-European studies, especially Slavic, Baltic, Celtic, Anatolian, Tocharian, Indo-Iranian languages; Fenno-Ugric; Afro-Asiatic; etymology; genetic classification; mathematic models in historical linguistics. DOI OLD ICELANDIC GNÁ Gná senojoje islandų kalboje ANNOTATION In the article the Old Icelandic theonym Gná is analyzed from the point of view of semantics, word formation, etymology, and semantic typology. Taking in account the partial results, the following hypothesis was formulated: the theonym Gná may reflect proto-Germanic *gno or *gnaihō, which seems to be a lost Germanic continuation of the Indo-European appellative *dʰgʰmeh₂ “earth” or its derivative *dʰgʰmeh₂ikeh₂ “belonging to the earth”. The theonyms designating the earth deities formed from the stem *dʰgʰem- appear in nine Indo-European traditions. The analyzed Germanic theonym can represent the tenth tradition. KEYWORDS: theonym, word formation, semantics, etymology. ANOTACIJA Šiame straipsnyje semantikos, žodžių darybos, etimologijos ir semantinės tipologijos požiūriu analizuojamas senosios islandų kalbos teonimas Gná. Atsižvelgiant į dalinius rezultatus, buvo iškelta hipotezė, kad teonimas Gná gali atspindėti germanų prokalbės *gnō, arba *gnaihō, kuris, tikėtina, yra prarastas indoeuropiečių apeliatyvo *dʰgʰmeh₂ ‘žemė’ ar jo vedinio *dʰgʰmeh₂ikeh₂ ‘priklausantis žemei’ tęsinys germanų kalbose. Žemės dievybes pavadinantys teonimai, susiformavę iš kamieno *dʰgʰem, randami devyniose indoeuropiečių tradicijose. Straipsnyje analizuojamas germanų teonimas gali būti dešimtosios tradicijos atspindys. ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: teonimas, žodžių daryba, semantika, etimologija. Straipsniai / Articles 9 VÁCLAV BLAŽEK 1. DOCUMENTATION Old Icelandic Gná designated ‘goddess from the group of Ásynja’. It appears in several Old Icelandic texts: 1.1. Gylfaginning 35. Frá ásynjum. Þá mælti Gangleri: ‘Hverjar eru ásynjurnar?’ Hárr segir: “Frigg er æðst. Hon á þann bæ, er Fensalir heita, ok er hann allvegligr. Önnur er Sága. Hon býr á Sökkvabek, ok er þat mikill staðr. Þriðja er Eir. Hon er læknir beztr. Fjórða er Gefjun. Hon er mær, ok henni þjóna þær, er meyjar andast. Fimta er Fulla. Hon er enn mær ok ferr laus hár ok gullband um höfði. Hon ber eski Friggjar ok gætir skóklaða hennar ok veit launráð með henni. Freyja er tignust með Frigg. Hon giftist þeim manni, er Óðr heitir. Dóttir þeira er Hnoss. Hon er svá fǫgr, at af hennar nafni eru hnossir kallaðar, þat er fagr er ok gersemligt. Óðr fór í braut langar leiðir, en Freyja grætr eftir, en tár hennar er gull rautt. Freyja á mörg nöfn, en sú er sök til þess, at hon gaf sér ýmis heiti, er hon fór með ókunnum þjóðum at leita Óðs. Hon heitir Mardöll ok Hörn, Gefn, Sýr. Freyja átti Brísingamen. Hon er ok kölluð Vanadís. Sjaunda Sjöfn, hon gætir mjök til at snúa hugum manna til ásta, kvinna ok karla, ok af henni nafni er elskuginn kallaðr sjafni. Átta Lofn, hon er svá mild ok góð til áheita, at hon fær leyfi af Alföðr eða Frigg til manna samgangs, kvinna ok karla, þótt áðr sé bannað eða þertkit þyki. Þar af hennar nafni lof kallat ok svá þat, at hon er lofuð mjök af mönnum. Níunda Vár, hon hlýðir á eiða manna ok einkamál, er veita sín á milli konur ok karlar. Því heita þau mál várar. Hon hefnir ok þeim, er brigða. Tíunda Vör, hon er vitr ok spurl, svá at engi hlut má hana leyna. Þar er orðtak, at kona verði vör þess, er hon verðr vís. Ellifta Syn, hon gætir dura í höllinni ok lýkr fyrir þeim, er eigi skulu inn ganga, ok hon er sett til varnar á þingum fyrir þau mál, er hon vill ósanna. Því er þat orðtak, at syn sé fyrir sett, þá er maðr neitar. Tólfta Hlín, hon er sett til gæzlu yfir þeim mönnum, er Frigg vill forða við háska nökkurum. Þaðan af er þat orðtak, at sá, er forðast, hleinir. Þrettánda Snotra, hon er vitr ok látprúð. Af hennar heiti er kallat snotr kona eða karlmaðr, sá er hóflátr er. Fjórtánda Gná, hana sendir Frigg í ýmsa heima at erendum sínum. Hon á þann hest, er rennt loft ok lög ok heitir Hófvarpnir. Þar var eitt sinn, er hon reið, at vanir nökkurir sá reið hennar í loftinu. Þá mælti einn: ‘Hvat þar flýgr, / hvat þar ferr / eða at lofti líðr?’ Hon svarar: ‘Né ek flýg, / þó ek ferr / ok at lofti líðr / á Hófvarpni, / þeim er Hamskerpir / gat við Garðrofu.’ 10 Acta Linguistica Lithuanica LXX Old Icelandic gnā Af Gnár nafni er svá kallat, at þat gnæfar, er hátt ferr. Sól ok Bil eru talðar með ásynjum, en sagt er fyrr frá eðli þeirra. “Then said Gangleri: ‘Which are the Ásynjur?’ Här said: ‘Frigg is the foremost: she has that estate which is called Fensalir, and it is most glorious. The second is Sága: she dwells at Søkvabekkr, and that is a great abode. The third is Eir: she is the best physician. The fourth is Gefjun: she is a virgin, and they that die maidens attend her. The fifth is Fulla: she also is a maid, and goes with loose tresses and a golden band about her head; she bears the ash coffer of Frigg, and has charge over her footgear, and knows her secret counsel. Freyja is most gently born (together with Frigg); she is wedded to the man named Ódr. Their daughter is Hnoss: she is so fair, that these things which are fair and precious are called hnosir. Ódr went away on long journeys, and Freyja weeps for him, and her tears are red gold. Freyja has many names, and this is the cause thereof: that she gave herself sundry names, when she went out among unknown peoples seeking Ódr: she is called Mardöll and Hörn, Gefn, Sýr. Freyja had the necklace Brísinga-men. She is also called Lady of the Vanir. The seventh is Sjöfn: she is most diligent in turning the thoughts of men to love, both of women and of men; and from her name love-longing is called sjafni. The eighth is Lofn: she is so gracious and kindly to those that call upon her, that she wins Allfather’s or Frigg’s permission for the coming together of mankind in marriage, of women and of men, though it were forbidden before, or seemed flatly denied; from her name such permission is called ‘leave,’ and thus also she is much ‘loved’ of men. The ninth is Vár: she hearkens to the oaths and compacts made between men and women; wherefore such covenants are called ‘vows.’ She also takes vengeance on those who perjure themselves. The tenth is Vör: she is wise and of searching spirit, so that none can conceal anything from her; it is a saying, that a woman becomes ‘ware’ of that of which she is informed. The eleventh is Syn: she keeps the door in the hall, and locks it before those who should not go in; she is also set at trials as a defence against such suits as she wishes to refute: hence is the expression, that syn is set forward, when a man denies. The twelfth is Hlín: she is established as keeper over those men whom Frigg desires to preserve from any danger; hence comes the saying, that he who escapes ‘leans.’ Snotra is thirteenth: she is prudent and of gentle bearing; from her name a woman or a man who is moderate is called snotr. The fourteenth is Gná: her Frigg sends into divers lands on her errands; she has that horse which runs over sky and sea and is called Hoof-Tosser. Once when she was riding, certain of the Vanir saw her course in the air; then one spake: What flieth there? | What fareth there, Or glideth in the air? Strápsni / Articles 11 VÁCLAV BLAŽEK She made answer: I fly not, | though I fare And in the air glide Hoof-Toser, | him that Hamskerpir Gat with Gardrofa. From Gná’s name that which soars high is said to gnæfa {“to project”}. Sól and Bil are reckoned among the Ásynjur, but their nature has been told before.” <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/pre/pre04.htm> 1.2. Skáldskaparmál 433.6 In the following passage there are summarized 28 Ásynja-names, including Gná: Nú skal Ásynjur / allar nefna: / Frigg ok Freyja / Fulla ok Snǫtra / Gerðr ok Gefjun / Gná Lofn Skaði / Jǫrð ok Iðunn / Ilmr Bil Njorun. / Hlin ok Nanna / Hnoss Rindr ok Sǫfn / Sól ok Sága / Sign ok Vǫr. / Þá er Vár, ok Syn / verðar at nefna / en Þrúðr ok Rán / þeim næst talið. <http://www.vsnweb-publications.org.uk/Edda-2a.pdf> <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/pre/pre05.htm> 1.3. Þjóðólfr ór Hvini, Ynglingatal 7 // 12–13 Kveðat dul, / nema Dyggva hǫr / Glitnis Gná / at gamni hef, / þvít jódis / Ulfs ok Narfa / konungmann / kjósa skyld, / ok alvald / Yngva þjóðar / Loka mær / of leikin hef. “I call it no secret, but {the Gná <goddess> of Glitnir <horse>} [= Hel] has the corpse of Dyggvi for [her] pleasure, for {the sister of the Wolf and of Narfi} [= Hel] had to choose the king. And {the maiden of Loki} [= Hel] has outplayed the sovereign {of the people of Yngvi} [= Svíar].” <http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Ynglingatal> Edith Marold (ed.), 2012. ‘Þjóðólfr ór Hvini, Ynglingatal 7, in: Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. <http://skaldic.abdn.ac.uk/db.php?id=4402&if=default&table=verses&val=edition> <https://notendur.hi.is/eybjorn/ugm/skindex/yt.html> 12 Acta Linguistica Lithuanica LXX Old Icelandic gná 2. SEMANTIC ANALYSIS From Gylfaginning 35 it is known that ‘Frigg sends her in different words’ (í ýmsa heima). In Ynglingatal 7 the perifrastic expression Glnis Gnà “Gná of horse” was used for the same person as þvit jódis / Ulfs ok Narfa “sister of the Wolf and of Narfi” and Loka mær “Loki’s maiden”, i.e. Hel, the Underworld goddess (Goeres 2015, 40). And in Skáldskaparmál 33.6 Gná is named in the triad Gná Lofn Skaði, where the last theonym is probably connected with Gothic skadus “shadow”, Old English sceadu, Old Saxon skado, Old High German scato id., indicating the underworld affiliation of this goddess (cf. de Vries 1962, 480). Gná is not identical with Skaði, but she mediates contact between the world (& sky) and underworld, represented by Skaði. The primary semantics of Gná could be related to the meaning “world.” 3. INTERNAL RECONSTRUCTION With regard to the gen.sg. Gná, the theonym Gná is the ō-stem (the lengthening of the final vowel is regular in auslaut – see Noreen 1884, 42, §104), derivable from Proto-Germanic *gnawō (cf. þrá “longing, yearning” < *þrawō), *gnaþō (cf. rá “berth in a ship” < *raþō), or *gnaiwō (cf. tá “toe” < *taiwō(n)), *gnaiþō (cf. rá-merki “Grenzlinie” < *raiþō), or *gnēwō (cf. þrá “eyelid” < *þrēwō-) — see Noreen 1884, 117, §291; de Vries 1962, 618, 430, 578, 51; Kroon 2013, 45, 402, 505, 403, 76. 4. ETYMOLOGICAL ANALYSIS With regard to the hypothesis about the primary semantics of Gná, which was probably connected with the meaning “world” (§2), it is attractive to derive it directly from *gnō < *ĝʰnā- < *(d)ĝʰmeH₂- as Vedic ksmā́- f. “earth” [RV 3.35.6] & imā́- f. [RV 6.52.15]. Let us mention that the initial cluster *gm- is excluded in Proto-Germanic. Among the extended forms the variant *gnaiþō, which is parallel to Greek γύναικειος, Ionic γυναικήιος, in compounds γύναικο-, “belonging to woman, feminine”, implies the semantic structure ±“world” = *“belonging to *gnō”, where *gnō could originally mean “earth”. The semantic relation between “world” and “earth” is understandable, cf. Vedic bhū́- “earth, ground, soil” besides “world, space, universe”, originally “place of being” (MW 760–61). Straipsniai / Articles 13 VÁCLAV BLAŽEK 5. INDO-EUROPEAN THEONYMS DERIVED FROM THE ROOT *dʰgʰem- “earth” Tradition Theonym Projection Comments Vedic Dyā́vakṣā́m du. *di̯eu̯H₁-dʰgʰomH₁ “Heaven & Earth” Avestan Zā̊, acc. Zǝm, gen. Zǝmō *dʰgʰm̥s/*dʰgʰom/*dʰgʰmós “Earth” Hittite Tēkan; Taganzepa- *dʰégʰm̥; *dʰgʰom-sebʰo- “Earth”; “Earth-self”? Greek Χθών; Χθονία (on Demeter) *dʰgʰóm < *dʰgʰóm-s; *dʰgʰóm-iH₂ “Earth”; “belonging to the Earth” Umbrian Hunte dat. *dʰgʰómto-ei Middle Welsh Dōn gen. *dʰgʰóm-os *“{Mother} of the Earth” Old Icelandic Gná *dʰgʰmeH₂- or *dʰgʰmeH₂ikeH₂-? *“Earth” or *“belonging to the Earth” Lithuanian *Žemina *dʰgʰemineH₂- “belonging to the Earth” Latvian Zemes māte *dʰgʰmei̯eH₂- “Earth’s mother” Russian Мать-сыра Земля *dʰgʰmei̯eH₂- “Mother – damp Earth” Tocharian B keṃ-nākte acc. *dʰgʰóm-m̥ “Earth-Goddess” 6. CONCLUSION The Old Icelandic theonym Gná designated the goddess communicating with both sky & world and underworld. Its internal reconstruction leads to the Germanic protoform *gnō or *gnaihō, which can be interpreted as “world” ~ “belonging to the earth”. In Indo-European perspective, they may be projected into *dʰgʰmeH₂- “earth” or *dʰgʰmeH₂ikeH₂- “belonging to the earth”. This solution identifies a hidden Germanic continuation of the Indo-European appellative *dʰgʰem- “earth”, known only in the form of the Germanic derivative *gum- “man” < *dʰgʰm̥-hon- (Kroonen 2013, 195). In Indo-European 14 Acta Linguistica Lithuanica LXX Old Icelandic gná perspective the derivatives of *dʰǵʰem- form most frequently the theonyms connected with “earth”. R E F E R E N C E S EWAi – Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen I–II, von Manfred Mayrhofer. Heidelberg: Winter, 1986–2001. Goes Erin Michelle 2015: The Poetics of Commemoration. Shaldic Verse and Social Memory. Oxford: University Press, 89–107. Hofmann Karl & Forssman Bernhard 1996: Avestische Laut- und Flexionlehre. Innsbruck: Innsbrucker Beiträge zur Sprachwissenschaft. Kloekhorst Alwin 2008: Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon. Leiden–Boston: Brill. Kroonen Guus 2013: Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic. Leiden–Boston: Brill. Noreen Adolf 1844: Altordische Grammatik 1: Altisländische und altnorwegische Grammatik. Halle: Niemeyer. Poultney James Wilson 1959: The Bronze Tables of Iguvium XVII. Baltimore: American Philological Association. Toporov Vladimir N. 2000: K rekonstrukcii balto-slavianskogo mifologičeskogo obraza Zemli-Materi *Zem̑a & *Māte (*Māti). – Bato-slavianskie issledovanija XIV (1998–1999). Moskva: Indrik, 239–371. MW – Monier-Williams Sir Monier 1899 [1993]: A Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. de Vaan Michiel 2008: Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages. Leiden–Boston: Brill. de Vries Jan 1962: Altnoordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. Leiden: Brill. Wilkens Jens, Georges-Jean Pinault & Michèl Peyrot 2014: A Tocharian B parallel to the legend of Kalmāṣapāda and Sutasoma of the Old Uyghur Daśakarmapathādanamālā. – Acta Orientalia Hungarica 67, 1–18. Acknowledgment The contribution was prepared in frame of the Research Fund of Masaryk University, No. 2817. Straipsniai / Articles 15 VÁCLAV BLAŽEK Gnā senojo islandų kalboje SANTRAUKA Straipsnyje analizuojamas senovės islandų kalbos teonimas Gnā per semantinį, žodžių darybos, etimologijos ir semantinės tipologijos pjūvius. Deivė Gnā priklauso Ásynja grupei, o pats teonimas aptinkamas keliuose senovės islandų tekstuose. Pirminė semantinė teonimo Gnā analizė parodė, kad vardas sietinas su reikšme „pasaulis“, nes mitologijoje deivė palaikė ryšį tarp požemio karalystės, žemės ir dangaus. Vidinės rekonstrukcijos metu paaiškėjo, kad teonimas Gnā gali būti protogermaniškas kilmės ir kildinamas iš *gnawō, *gʰnā, arba *gnaiwō, *gnaiʰō, arba *gʰnēwō. Remiantis pirmine semantine analize teonimas greičiausiai sietinas su žodžio ‘pasaulis’ reikšme. Todėl etimologiniai analizuojant prieita prie išvados, kad teonimas galėtų būti tiesiogiai kildinamas iš *gnō < *gʰnā- < *(dʰ)gʰmeh₂- kaip vedų kṣmā- f. ‘žemė’. Teonimo vidinės rekonstrukcija paaiškintų, kad teonimas yra protogermaniška indoeuropietiško apeliatyvo *dʰgʰmeh₂- ‘žemė’ forma arba šio apeliatyvo vedinys *dʰgʰmeh₂ikeh₂- ‘priklausantis žemei’. Teonimai, įvardijantys žemės dievybes, būdingi daugeliui indoeuropiečių tradicijos, o analizuojamas deivės Gnā vardas gali atstovauti dėstomai tradicijai. Įteikta 2019 m. gegužės 8 d. VÁCLAV BLAŽEK Ústav jazykovědy a baltistiky Filozofická fakulta Masarykovy University A. Nováka 1, CZ-60200 Brno [email protected] 16 Acta Linguistica Lithuanica LXX