APPELLATIVES.
The great river of India, which has given its name to that country, is
derived from Sansc. _sindu_, Persian _hindu_, water or sea. It was known
to the ancients under its present name 500 years B.C. Another river of
Hindostan, the Sinde, shews more exactly the Sansc. form, as the Indus
does the Persian. It will be seen that there are some other instances of
this word in the ancient or modern river-names of Europe.
1. _India._ The INDUS and the SINDE.
_Asia Minor._ INDUS ant., now the Tavas.
_France._ INDIS ant., now the Dain.
_Germany._ INDA, 9th cent. The INDE near Aix-la-Chapelle.
_Norway._ The INDA.
2. _With the ending er._
_France._ The INDRE. Joins the Loire.
The most widely spread root is the Sansc. _ap_, Goth. _ahva_, Old High
Germ. _aha_, Old Norse _â_, Ang.-Sax. _ea_, Lat. _aqua_, &c. With the
form _ahva_ Fürst connects Ahava as the name of a river in the district
of Babylon, mentioned in Ezra, chap. 8, v. 21--"Then I proclaimed a fast
there at the river of Ahava." But from the 15th verse it would rather
seem that Ahava was a place and not a river--"and I gathered them
together to the river that _runneth_ to Ahava." The place might
certainly, as in many other cases, take its name from the river on which
it stood, but this is one step further into the dark. From the root _ab_
or _ap_ is formed Latin _amnis_, a river, corresponding, as Diefenbach
suggests, with a Sansc. _abnas_. Also the Celt. _auwon_, _avon_,
_abhain_, or _amhain_, of the same meaning, from the simple form found
in Obs. Gael. _abh_, water. The Old German _aha_, _awa_, _ava_, or
_afa_, signifying water or river, is added to many names of that country
which are themselves probably of Celtic or other origin; the form in
Modern German is generally _ach_ or _au_. The ending in _a_ of some
English rivers, as the Rotha, Bratha, &c., I have already suggested,
chapter 3, may be from the same origin; this form corresponds most
nearly with the Scandinavian. There are one or two, as the Caldew in
Cumberland, which seem to show the Germ. form _au_ or _ow_. The ending
_ick_ or _ock_ in several Scotch rivers, as the Bannock and the Errick,
may be from a word of similar meaning, most probably the obs. Gael.
_oich_.
I divide the widely spread forms from this root for convenience into two
groups, _ap_ or _av_, and _ach_ or _ah_. The relation between the
consonants is shown in the Gr. {hippos}, Lat. _equus_, Ang.-Sax. _eoh_,
horse, three words similarly formed from one root. The European names in
the following group I take to be most probably from the Celtic--the
Asiatic, if they come in, must be referred to the Sanscrit, or a kindred
and coeval tongue.
1. _England._ The IVE. Cumberland.
_Portugal._ The AVIA.
_Germany._ IPFA, 8th cent., now the IPF--here?
_Asia Minor._ HYPIUS ant.--here?
2. _With the ending en = Celtic auwon, avon, abhain, amhain, Lat. amnis._
_England._ The AVON and EVAN. Many rivers in England, Scotland,
and Wales.
_Scotland._ The AMON, near Edinburgh, also, but less correctly,
called the ALMOND.
_France._ The AVEN. Dep. Finistère.
_Germany._ AMANA, 8th cent., now the OHM.
_Hindostan._ HYPANIS ant., now the Sutledge--here?
_Asia Minor._ EVENUS ant., now the Sandarli--here? AMNIAS ant.,
probably here.
_Syria._ ABANA ant., now the Barrada--here?
3. _With the ending er._
_France._ The AVRE. Dep. Eure.
_Germany._ IVARUS, 2nd cent., now the Salzach. EPAR(AHA), 8th
cent., now the EBR(ACH).
_Spain._ IBERUS ant., now the EBRO.
_Thrace._ HEBRUS ant., now the Maritza.
4. _With the ending el._
_England._ The IVEL.[1] Somers.
_Germany._ APULA, 9th cent. The APPEL(BACH).
_Hungary._ The IPOLY or EYPEL. Joins the Danube.
5. _With the ending es._[2]
_Germany._ IBISA, 8th cent. The IPS.
_Portugal._ The AVIZ.
_Sicily._ HYPSAS ant., now the Belici.
_Illyria._ APSUS ant., now the Beratinos.
A related form to No. 2 of the above group I take to be _ain_ = Manx
_aon_ for _avon_.
_England._ The AUNE, Devonshire. The EHEN, Cumberland. The INNEY,
Cornwall.
_Germany._ The AENUS of Tacitus, now the INN. The IHNA, Prussia.
_Greece._ OENUS ant.--here?
And I place here also a form _annas_, which I take to be = Sansc.
_abnas_, Latin _amnis_.
_India._ The ANNAS. Gwalior.
_Germany._ ANISA, 8th cent. The ENS in Austria.
_Piedmont._ The ANZA. Joins the Tosa.
In the other form _ah_, _ach_, there may be more admixture of the German
element. But the English names, I take it, are all Celtic. The form
_ock_ comes nearest to the obs. Gael. _oich_.
1. _England._ The OCK, Berks. The OKE, Devon.
_Scotland._ The OICH, river and lake. The AWE, Argyle. The EYE,
Berwicks.
_France._ The AA. Dep. Nord.
_Germany._ The AACH and the AU.
_Holland._ The AA in Brabant.
_Russia._ The OKA and the AA.
2. _With the ending el._
_Scotland._ The OIKELL. Sutherland.
_Germany._ AQUILA, 8th cent., now the EICHEL.
With the Sanscrit root _ab_ or _ap_ is to be connected Sanscrit _ambu_,
_ambhas_, water, whence Latin _imber_ and Gr. {ombros}. If the Abus of
Ptolemy was the name of the river Humber, it contains the oldest and
simplest form of the root. But the river is called the Humbre in the
earliest Ang.-Sax. records. I class in this group also the forms in _am_
and _em_.
1. _England._ The EMME. Berkshire.
_Switzerland._ The EMME.
_Holland._ EMA, 10th ct., now the EEM--here?
_Sweden._ The UMEA.
_Asia._ The EMBA, also called the Djem.
2. _With the ending en._
_Switzerland._ The EMMEN. Two rivers.
3. _With the ending er._
_England._ The HUMBER. Humbre, _Cod. Dip._
The AMBER. Derbyshire.
_Germany._ AMBRA, 8th cent., now the AMMER, and the EMMER.
_Italy._ UMBRO ant., now the OMBRONE.
4. _With the ending el._
_England._ The AMBLE or HAMBLE. Hants.
The AMELE or EMELE, now the Mole, in Surrey.
_Germany._ The HAMEL. Hanover.
_Belgium._ AMBL(AVA), 9th cent., now the AMBL(ÈVE).
5. _With the ending es, perhaps = Sansc. ambhas, water._
_England._ The HAMPS. Stafford.
_France._ The AMASSE. Joins the Loire.
_Germany._ AMISIA, 1st cent. The EMS in Westphalia.
EMISA, 8th cent. The EMS in Nassau.
6. _With the ending st._[3]
_Asia._ AMBASTUS ant. Now the Camboja.
The whole of the above forms are to be traced back to the Sanscrit verb
_ab_ or _amb_, signifying to move; and that probably to a more simple
verb _â_. The Old Norse _â_, Ang.-Sax. _eâ_, water or river, contain
then a root as primitive as language can show. We can resolve it into
nothing simpler--we can trace it back to nothing older. And it is
curious to note how the Latin _aqua_ has, in the present French word
_eau_, come round again once more to its primitive simplicity. Curious
also to note to what phonetic proportions many of the words, as the
Avon, the Humber, &c., have grown, and yet without adding one particle
of meaning, as I hold, to the primeval _â_.
The root of the following group seems to be Sansc. _ux_ or _uks_, to
water, whence Welsh _wysg_, Irish _uisg_, Old Belg. _achaz_, water or
river. Hence also Eng. _ooze_, and according to Eichoff (_Parrallele des
langues_), also _wash_.
1. _England._ The AXE, Devon. The AXE, Somers.
The ASH, Wilts. _Cod. Dip._ ASCE.
The ISACA, or ISCA (Ptolemy). The EXE.
The ESK, Cumb. ESKE, Yorks.
The ESK, in Scotland, five rivers.
The USK, in Monmouthshire.
_France._ The ISAC. Dep. Mayenne.
The ESQUE. Normandy.
The ACHASE. Dauphiné.
_Germany._ ACHAZA, 10th cent., now the ESCHAZ.
ACARSE,[4] 11th cent., now the AXE.
The AHSE. Prussia.
_M[oe]sia._ [OE]SCUS ant.
_Asia._ ACES ant. (Herodotus), now the OXUS or Amou.
_Greece._ AXIUS ant., now the Vardar in Macedon.[5] AXUS or
OAXES in Crete, still retains its name.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ AXONA ant. (Cæsar.) Now the AISNE.
_Asia._ ASCANIA ant. Two lakes, one in Phrygia, and the other
in Bithynia.
3. _With the ending el._
_England._ UXELLA ant., (Richard of Cirencester), supposed to be
the Parret.
The ESKLE, Hereford.
_Germany._ ISCALA, 8th cent. The ISCHL.
_Russia._ The OSKOL. Joins the Donetz.
4. _With the ending er._
_France._ OSCARA ant., now the OUSCHE.
_Belgium._ HISSCAR, 9th cent., seems not to be identified.
I am inclined to bring in here the root _is_, respecting which
Förstemann observes that it is "a word found in river-names over a great
part of Europe, but the etymology of which is as yet entirely unknown."
I connect it with the above group, referring also to the Old Norse _is_
motus, _isia_, proruere, as perhaps allied. I feel an uncertainty about
bringing the name OUSE either in this group or the last, for two at
least of the rivers so called are so very tortuous in their course as to
make us think of the Welsh _osgo_, obliquity.
1. _Germany._ The ISE and the EIS(ACH).
_Syria._ ISSUS ant., now the Baias--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ ISANA, 8th cent. The ISEN.
3. _With the ending er._
_France._ ISARA, 1st cent. B.C. The ISÈRE and the OISE.[6]
_Germany._ ISARA ant. The ISAR.
4. _With the ending el._
_Scotland._ The ISLA. Two rivers.
_France._ The ISOLÉ.
_Holland._ ISELA, 8th cent., now the YSSEL.
_Spain._ The ESLA.
5. _With the ending es._
_England._ The ISIS, vulg. Ouse.
6. _With the ending et._
_Siberia._ The ISSET. Joins the Tobol.
7. _In a compound form._
The ISTER, or Danube, perhaps = IS-STER, from a word _ster_, a river,
hereafter noticed.
ISMENUS ant., in B[oe]otia. The ending seems to be from a Celt. word
_man_ or _mon_, probably signifying water or river, and found in
several other names, as the Idumania of Ptolemy, now the
Blackwater, the Alcmona of Germany, now the Altmühl, the Haliacmon
of Macedonia, now the Vistritza, &c.
HESUDROS, the ancient name of the Sutledge (Sansc. _udra_, water),
may also come in.
From the Sansc. _ud_, water--in comp. _udra_, as in _samudra,_ the sea,
_i.e._, collection of waters, (see also Hesudros above)--come Sansc.
_udon_, Gr. {hydôr}, Slav. _woda_, Goth. _wato_, Germ. _wasser_, Eng.
_water_, Lith. _audra_, fluctus, &c.
1. _Italy._ ADUA ant., now the ADDA.
_Bohemia._ The WAT(AWA).
2. _With the ending en = Sansc. udon, water?_
_France._ The ODON.
_Germany._ ADEN(OUA), 10th cent., now the ADEN(AU).
3. _With the ending er = Germ. wasser, Eng. water, &c._
_England._ The ODDER and the OTTER.
The WODER, Dorset. Woder, _Cod. Dip._
The ADUR in Sussex.
The VEDRA of Ptolemy, now the Wear, according to
Pott, comes in here.
_France._ ATURUS ant., now the ADOUR.
AUDURA ant., now the EURE.
_Germany._ ODORA ant., now the ODER.
WETTER(AHA), 8th cent., now the WETTER.[7]
4. _With the ending rn._[8]
_Germany._ ADRANA, 1st cent., now the EDER.
_Asia Minor._ The EDRENOS. Anc. Rhyndacus.
5. _With the ending el._
_Russia._ The VODLA. Lake and river.
To the above root I also put a form in _ed_, corresponding with Welsh
_eddain_, to flow, Ang.-Sax. _edre_, a water-course, &c.
1. _With the ending en._
_England._ The EDEN. Cumberland. Probably the Ituna of Ptolemy.
_Scotland._ The EDEN and the YTHAN.
_France._ The ITON. Joins the Eure.
2. _With the ending er._
_Scotland._ The ETTR(ICK). Joins the Tweed.
_Germany._ EITER(AHA), 8th cent. The EITR(ACH)[9], the EITER(ACH),
and the AITER(ACH).
_Denmark._ EIDORA ant., now the EIDER.
3. _With the ending el._
_England._ The IDLE. Notts.
4. _With the ending es._
_Germany._ IDASA, 11th cent., now the ITZ.
With the above may perhaps also be classed the Celtic _and_ or
_ant_,[10] to which Mone, (_Die Gallische sprache_), gives the meaning
of water.
1. _England._ The ANT. Norfolk.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The ANTON.[11] Hants.
3. _With the ending er._
_France._ ANDRIA ant. Now the Lindre.
4. _With the ending el._
_France._ The ANDELLE. Joins the Seine.
_Germany._ ANTIL(AHA), 10th cent., now the ANDEL(AU).
To the Celt. _dubr_, Welsh _dwfr_, water, are by common consent referred
the names in the second division of the undermentioned. But the forms
_dub_, _duv_, which in accordance with the general system here
advocated, I take to be the older and simpler form of the word, are, by
Zeuss (_Gramm. Celt._), as well as most English writers, referred to
Welsh _du_, Gael. _dubh_, black.
1. _England._ The DOVE. Staffordshire.
The DOW. Yorkshire.
_Wales._ TOBIUS ant., now the TOWY.
The DOVY, Merioneth.
_France._ DUBIS ant., now the DOUBS.
The DOUX, joins the Rhine.
2. _With the ending er, forming the Celtic dubr, Welsh dwfr._[12]
_Ireland._ DOBUR ant., retains its name.[13]
_France._ The TOUVRE.
_Germany._ DUBRA, 8th cent., now the TAUBER.
The DAUBR(AWA), Bohemia.
3. _With the ending es._
_Russia._ The DUBISSA.
Another Celtic word for water is _dur_, which, however, seems more
common in the names of towns (situated upon waters) than in the names of
rivers. Is this word formed by syncope from the last, as _duber_ =
_dur_? Or is it directly from the root of the Sansc. _drâ_ or _dur_, to
move?
1. _England._ The DURRA. Cornwall.
_Germany._ {Douras}, Strabo, now the Iller or the Isar.
_Switz._ DURA, 9th cent. The THUR.[14]
_Italy._ DURIA ant., now the DORA.
TURRUS ant., now the TORRE.
_Spain._ DURIUS ant., now the DOURO.
_Russia._ The TURA. Siberia.
The TURIJA. Russ. Poland.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ DURANIUS ant., now the DORDOGNE.
In this chapter is to be included the root _ar_, respecting which I
quote the following remarks of Förstemann. "The meaning of river, water,
must have belonged to this wide-spread root, though I never find it
applied as an appellative, apart from the obsolete Dutch word _aar_,
which Pott produces. I also nowhere find even an attempt to explain the
following river-names from any root, and know so little as scarcely to
make a passing suggestion; even the Sanscrit itself shows me no likely
word approaching it, unless perhaps we think of _ara_, swift
(_Petersburger Wörterbuch_)."
The root, I apprehend, like that of most other river-names, is to be
found in a verb signifying to move, to go--the Sansc. _ar_, _ir_ or
_ur_, Lat. _ire_, _errare_, &c. And we are not without an additional
trace of the sense we want, as the Basque has _ur_, water, _errio_, a
river, and the Hung. has _er_, a brook. The sense of swiftness, as
found in Sansc. _ara_, may perhaps intermix in the following names. But
there is also a word of precisely opposite meaning, the Gael. _ar_,
slow, whence Armstrong, with considerable reason, derives the name of
the Arar (or Saone), a river noted above all others for the slowness of
its course. Respecting this word as a termination see page 11.
1. _England._ The ARROW, Radnor. The ARROW, Worcester.
The ORE. Joins the Alde.
_Ireland._ ARROW, lake and river, Sligo.
_France._ The AURAY. Dep. Morbihan.
_Germany._ ARA, 8th cent. The AHR, near Bonn, the OHRE,
which joins the Elbe, and the OHRE in
Thuringia, had all the same ancient name of
Ara.
UR(AHA), 10th cent., now the AUR(ACH).
_Switzerland._ ARA, ant. The AAR.
_Italy._ The ERA. Joins the Arno.
_Spain._ URIUS ant., now the Rio Tinte.
_Russia._ OARUS (Herodotus), perhaps the Volga.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The ARUN, Sussex.
_Scotland._ The ORRIN and the EARNE.
_Ireland._ The ERNE, Ulster.
_Germany._ OORANA, 8th cent., now the ORRE.
ARN(APE), 8th cent., (_ap_, water), now the ERFT.
The OHRN. Wirtemberg.
_Tuscany._ ARNUS ant. The ARNO.
3. _With the ending el._
_Germany._ ERL(AHA), 11th cent. The ERLA.
URULA, 9th cent. The ERL.
ARLA, 10th cent. The ARL.
The ORLA. Joins the Saale.
_Savoy._ The ARLY.
_Aust. Slavonia._ The ORLY(AVA).
_Russia._ The URAL and the ORL(YK).
From _ar_ and _ur_, to move, the Sanscrit forms _arch_ and _urj_, with
the same meaning, but perhaps in a rather more intense degree, if we may
judge by some of the derivatives, as Lat. _urgeo_, &c. In two of the
three appellatives which I find, the Basque _erreca_, brook, and the
Lettish _urga_, torrent, we may trace this sense; but in the third,
Mordvinian (a Finnish dialect), _erke_, lake, it is altogether wanting.
And on the whole, I cannot find it borne out in the rivers quoted
below. Perhaps the Obs. Gael. _arg_, white, which has been generally
adduced as the etymon of these names, may intermix.
1. _England._ The ARKE. Yorkshire.
The IRK. Lancashire.
_France._ The OURCQ. Dep. Aisne.
The ORGE and the ARC.
_Belgium._ The HERK. Prov. Limburg.
_Sardinia._ The ARC. Joins the Isère.
_Spain._ The ARGA. Joins the Aragon.
_Armenia._ ARAGUS ant., now the ARAK.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ ARGUNA, 8th cent. The ARGEN.
_Russia._ The ARGUN. Two rivers.
_Spain._ The ARAGON. Joins the Ebro.
3. _With the ending et._
_Siberia._ The IRKUT. Joins the Angara.
4. _With the ending es._
_France._ The ARQUES.
_Russia._ The IRGHIZ. Two rivers.
5. _With the ending enz._[15]
_Germany._ ARGENZA, 9th cent., now the ERGERS.
From the Sansc. _ri_, to flow, Gr. {rheô}, Lat. _rigo_ (often applied to
rivers--"Qua Ister Getas rigat," _Tibullus_), Sansc. _rinas_, fluid, Old
Sax. _rîha_, a torrent, Ang.-Sax. _regen_, Eng. _rain_, Slav. _rêka_, a
stream, Welsh _rhe_, rapid, _rhean_, _rhen_, a stream, &c., we get the
following group. The river Regen Berghaus derives from Germ. _regen_,
rain, in reference to the unusual amount of rain-fall which occurs in
the Böhmer-wald, where it has its source. Butmann derives it from Wend.
and Slav. _rêka_, a stream, connecting its name also with that of the
Rhine. Both these derivations I think rather too narrow.
With respect to the Rhine I quote the following opinions. Armstrong
derives it from Celt. _reidh-an_, a smooth water, than which nothing can
be more unsuitable--the characteristic of the river, as noticed by all
observers, from Cæsar and Tacitus downwards--being that of rapidity.
Donaldson compares it with Old Norse _renna_, fluere, and makes Rhine =
Anglo-Saxon _rin_, cursus aquæ. Grimm (_Deutsch. Gramm._) compares it
with Goth. _hrains_, pure, clear, and thinks that "in any case we must
dismiss the derivation from _rinnan_, fluere." Zeuss and Förstemann
support the opinion of Grimm; nevertheless, all three agree in thinking
that the name is of Celtic origin. The nearest word, as it seems to me,
is Welsh _rhean_, _rhen_, a stream, cognate with Sansc. _rinas_, fluid,
Old Norse _renna_, fluere, and (as I suppose), with Goth. _hrains_,
pure.
1. _England._ The REA. Worcester.
The WREY. Devonshire.
_Ireland._ The RYE. Joins the Liffey.
_Germany._ The REGA. Pomerania.
_Holland._ The REGGE. Joins the Vecht.
_Spain._ The RIGA. Pyrenees.
_Russia._ RHA ant., now the Volga.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ REGIN, 9th cent. The REGEN.
RHENUS, 1st cent. B.C. The RHINE.
The RHIN. Joins the Havel.
The RHINE. A small stream near Cassel.
_Norway._ The REEN.
_Italy._ The RENO by Bologna.
_Asiat. Russ._ The RHION, ant. Phasis.
The Sansc. _lî_, to wet, moisten, spreads into many forms through the
Indo-European languages. I divide them for convenience into two groups,
and take first Lat. _liqueo_, Old Norse _leka_, Ang.-Sax. _lecan_
(stillare, rigare), Gael. and Ir. _li_, sea, Gael. _lia_, Welsh _lli_,
_llion_, a stream. Most of the following names, I take it, are Celtic. I
am not sure that the sense of stillness or clearness does not enter
somewhat into the two following groups.
1. _England._ The LEE. Cheshire.
The LEACH. Gloucestershire.
_Ireland._ The LEE. Two rivers.
_Germany._ LICUS, 2nd cent., now the LECH.
LIA, 8th cent., now the LUHE.
_France._ LEGIA, 10th cent., now the LYS.[16]
_Belgium._ The LECK. Joins the Maas.
_Hindostan._ The LYE. Bengal.
2. _With the ending en = Welsh llion, a stream._
_England._ The LEEN. Notts.
_Scotland._ The LYON and the LYNE.
_France._ The LIGNE. Dep. Ardéche.
3. _With the ending er._
_England._ The LEGRE by Leicester, now the Soar.
_France._ LIGER ant. The LOIRE.
The LEGRE. Dep. Gironde.
For the second group I take Lat. _lavo_, _luo_, Old Norse _lauga_,
lavare, Anglo-Saxon _lagu_, water, Gael. _lo_, water, Gael. and Ir.
_loin_, stream. In this group there may perhaps be something more of the
Germain element, _e.g._, in the rivers of Scandinavia.
1. _England._ The LUG. Hereford.
_Wales._ The LOOE. Two rivers.
_France._ The LOUE. Dep. Haute Vienne.
_Germany._ LOUCH(AHA), 11th cent. The LAUCHA.
LOUA, 10th cent., not identified.
_Holland._ The LAVE.
_Finland._ The LUGA or LOUGA.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The LUNE. Lancashire.
The LAINE. Cornwall.
The LEVEN. Two rivers.
_Scotland._ The LEVEN. Two rivers.
_Ireland._ The LAGAN, near Belfast.
_France._ LUNA ant., now the LOING.
_Germany._ LOGAN(AHA), 8th cent., now the LAHN.
The LOWNA in Prussia.
_Norway._ The LOUGAN. Joins the Glommen.
The LOUVEN. Stift Christiana.
_Russia._ The LUGAN.
_Italy._ The LAVINO.
The lake LUGANO.
_India._ The LOONY--here?
3. _With the ending er._
_Scotland._ The LUGAR. Ayr.
_Wales._ The LLOUGHOR. Glamorgan.
To the above root I also place the following, corresponding more
distinctly with Welsh _llifo_, to pour.
1. _Ireland._ The LIFFEY by Dublin.
_Germany._ LUPPIA, 1st cent. The LIPPE.
The LIP(KA). Bohemia.
2. _With the ending er._
_England._ The LIVER. Cornwall.
_Scotland._ The LIVER. Argyle.
_Ireland._ The LIFFAR.
More remotely with the Sansc. _lî_, liquere, and directly with Welsh
_lleithio_, to moisten, _llyddo_, to pour, Gael. _lith_, a pool, smooth
water, Goth. _leithus_, Ang.-Sax. _lidh_, liquor, poculum, potus, I
connect the following. The rivers themselves hardly seem to bear out the
special idea of smoothness, which we might be apt to infer from the
root, and from the character of the mythological river Lethe.
1. _England._ The LID. Joins the Tamar.
_Scotland._ The LEITH. Co. Edinburgh.
_Wales._ The LAITH, now called the Dyfr.
_Germany._ LIT(AHA), 11th cent. The LEITHA.
_Sweden._ The LIDA.
_Hungary._ The LEITHA. Joins the Danube.
_Asia Minor._}
_Thessaly._ } LETHÆUS ant., three rivers--here?
_Crete._ }
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The LIDDEN (Leden, _Cod. Dip._) Worcester.
_Scotland._ The LEITHAN. Peebles.
3. _With the ending el._
_Scotland._ The LIDDLE. Joins the Esk.
From the Sansc. _nî_, to move, comes _nîran_, water, corresponding with
the Mod. Greek {neron} of the same meaning. And that the Greek word is
no new importation into that language, we may judge by the name of
Nereus, a water-god, the son of Neptune. The Gr. {naô}, fluo, the Gael.
_nigh_, to bathe, to wash, and the Obs. Gael. _near_, water, a river,
show a close relationship; the Heb. _nhar_, a river, also seems to be
allied. Compare the Nore, a name given to part of the estuary of the
Thames, with the Narra, the name of the two branches by which the Indus
flows into the sea. Also with the Nharawan, an ancient canal from the
Tigris towards the Persian Gulf. And with the Curische Nehrung, a strip
of land which separates the lagoon called the Curische Haf in Prussia
from the waters of the Baltic. On this name Mr. Winning remarks,[17] "I
offer the conjecture that the word _nehrung_ is equivalent to our
break-water, and that it is derived from the Sabine (or Old Prussian)
term _neriene_, strength, bravery." I should propose to give it a
meaning analogous, but rather different--deriving it from the word in
question, _nar_ or _ner_, water, and some equivalent of Old Norse
_engia_, coarctare, making _nehrung_ to signify "that which confines the
waters" (of the lake). In all these cases there is something of the
sense of an estuary, or of a channel communicating with the sea--the
Curische Haf being a large lagoon which receives the river Niemen, and
discharges it by an outlet into the Baltic. The following names I take
to be for the most part of Celtic origin.
1. _England._ The NOW. Derbyshire.
The NAR. Norfolk.
The NORE, part of the estuary the Thames.
_Ireland._ NEAGH. A lake, Ulster.
NORE. Joins the Shannon.
_Germany._ NOR(AHA), 8th cent., also called the NAHA.
_Italy._ NAR[18] ant. The NERA.
_Spain._ The NERJA. Malaga.
_Russia._ The NAR(OVA), and the NAREW.
_Europ. Turkey._ NARO ant., now the NARENTA.
_Mauretania._ NIA ant., now the Senegal--here?
_Hindostan._ NARRA, two branches of the Indus--here?
2. _With the ending en, = Sansc. nîran, water?_
_Illyria._ The NARON.
_Scotland._ The NAREN or NAIRN.
3. _With the ending es._
_Germany._ The NEERS. Rhen. Pruss.
From the Sansc. _nî_, to move, Gael. _nigh_, to bathe, to wash, comes, I
apprehend, the Welsh _nannaw_, _nennig_, _nant_, a small stream.
_England._ The NENE or NEN. Northampton.
The NENT. Cumberland.
_Ireland._ The NENAGH. Joins the Shannon.
_France._ The NENNY.
Closely allied to _nî_, to move, I take to be Sansc. _niv_, to flow,
Welsh _nofio_, to swim, to float, whence the names undermentioned. The
Novius of Ptolemy, supposed to be the Nith, if not a false rendering,
might come in here.
1. _France._ The NIVE. Joins the Adour.
_Germany._ NABA, 1st cent., now the NAAB in Bavaria.
_Holland._ NABA or NAVA, 1st cent., now the NAHE or NAVE.
_Spain._ The NAVIA. Falls into the Bay of Biscay.
_Russia._ The NEVA and the NEIVA.
_Hindostan._ The NAAF. Falls into the Bay of Bengal.
2. _With the ending en._
_Persia._ The NABON. Prov. Fars.
_Russ. Pol._ The NIEMEN.[19]
3. _With the ending er._
_Scotland._ The NAVER. River and lake.
_Wales._ The NEVER. Merioneth.
_France._ NIVERIS ant., now the NIEVRE.
_Danub. Prov._ NAPARIS (Herodotus), supposed to be the Ardisch.
4. _With the ending el._
_France and} The NIVELLE. Pyrenees.
Spain._ }
_Holland._ NABALIS (Tacitus), by some thought to be the Yssel.
5. _With the ending es._
_Scotland._ The NEVIS. Rises on Ben Nevis.
From the same root, _nî_, to move, and closely connected with the last
group, I take to be Sansc. _nis_, to flow, to water. Zeuss (_Die
Deutschen_) takes the word, as far as it relates to the rivers of
Germany, to be of Slavonic origin. It appears to be the word found as
the second part of some Slavonic river-names, as the Yalomnitza. But it
is also both Celtic and Teutonic, for the Armorican has _naoz_, a brook,
and the German has _nasz_, wet, _nässen_, to be wet.
1. _Scotland._ The NESS. River and lake.
_Germany._ NISA, 11th cent. The NEISSE, two rivers, both of which
join the Oder.
_Servia._ The NISS(AVA). Joins the Morava.
_Sicily._ The NISI.
2. _With the ending st._[20]
_France._ The NESTE. Hautes Pyrenees.
_Thrace._ NESTUS ant.
From the Greek {naô}, fluo, comes {nama}, a stream, {namatiaion hydôr},
running water. Hence seems to be NAMADUS, the name given by the Greek
geographers to the Nerbudda of India.
Another form which I take to be derived from the above Sanscrit root
_nî_, by the prefix _s_, is Sansc. _snu_, fluere, stillare, (whence
Germ. _schnee_, Eng. _snow_, &c.)
_Germany._ ZNUUIA, 11th cent., now the SCHNEI.
_Russia._ The ZNA or TZNA.
A derivative form is the Gael. and Ir. _snidh_ or _snith_, to ooze
through, distil, Obs. Gael. and Ir. _snuadh_, to flow, and _snuadh_, a
river, whence I take the following. Förstemann refers to Old High German
_snidan_, Modern German _schneiden_, to divide, in the sense of a
boundary, which is a root suitable enough in itself, though I think it
ought to yield the preference to the direct sense of water.
_England._ The SNYTE. Leicestershire.
_Germany._ SNEID(BACH), 8th cent., seems to be now called the Aue.
SMID(AHA), 9th cent., now the SCHMIDA, which joins the
Danube. For Snidaha?
The form _snid_ or _snith_ introduces the form _nid_ or _nith_, and
suggests the enquiry whether that may not also be a word signifying
water. Donaldson, (_Varronianus_), referring to a word Nethuns, "found
on a Tuscan mirror over a figure manifestly intended for Neptune,"
observes that "there can be little doubt that _nethu_ means water in the
Tuscan language." Assuming the correctness of the premises, I think that
this must be the case; and that as the Naiades (water-nymphs), contain
the Greek {naô}; as Nereus (a water-god), contains the word _ner_ before
referred to; as Neptune contains the Greek {niptô}, in each case
involving the signification of water, so Nethuns (=Neptunus) must
contain a related word _neth_ or _nethun_ of the same meaning. Also that
this word comes in its place here, as a derivative of the root _nî_, and
as a corresponding form to the Celtic _snidh_ or _snith_.
There are, however, two other meanings which might intermix in the
following names; the one is that suggested by Baxter, viz., Welsh
_nyddu_, to turn or twist, in the sense of tortuousness; and the other
is Old Norse _nidr_, fremor, strepitus.
1. _England._ The NIDD. Yorkshire.
_Scotland._ The NITH. Dumfriesshire.
_Wales._ The NEATH. Glamorgan.
_France._ The NIED. Joins the Sarre.
_Belgium._ The NETHE. Joins the Ruppel.
_Germany._ NIDA, 8th cent., now the NIDDA.
The NETHE. Joins the Weser.
_Norway._ The NIDA.
_Poland._ The NIDDA.
_Greece._ NEDA ant., now the Buzi in Elis.
2. _With the ending en._
_Scotland._ The NETHAN. Lesmahago.
3. _With the ending rn (see note p. 34)._
_Germany._ NITORNE, 9th cent., now the NIDDER.
There can hardly be a doubt that the words _sar_, _sor_, _sur_, so
widely spread in the names of rivers, are to be traced to the Sansc.
_sar_, _sri_, to move, to go, _sru_, to flow, whence _saras_, water,
_sarit_, _srôta_, river. The Permic and two kindred dialects of the
Finnic class have the simple form _sor_ or _sur_, a river, and the
Gaelic and Irish have the derived form _sruth_, to flow, _sroth_,
_sruth_, river. In the names Sorg, Sark, Sarco, I rather take the
guttural to have accrued.
1. _England._ The SOAR. Leicester.
The SARK, forms the boundary between England and
Scotland.
_France._ The SERRE. Joins the Oise.
_Germany._ SARAVUS ant., now the SAAR.
SORAHA, 8th cent., a small stream seemingly now
unnamed.
SURA, 7th cent. The SURE and the SUR.
The SORG. Prussia.
_Switzerland._ The SARE and the SUR.
_Norway._ The SURA.
_Russia._ The SURA. Joins the Volga.
The SVIR, falls into Lake Ladoga.
_Lombardy._ The SERIO. Joins the Adda.
The SERCHIO or SARCO.
_Portugal._ The SORA. Joins the Tagus.
_Asia._ SERUS ant., now the Meinam.
_Asia Minor._ SARUS ant., now the Sihon.
_India._ SARAYU[21] ant., now the Sardju.
_Armenia._ ARIUS[22] ant., now the Heri Rud.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ The SERAN. Joins the Rhone.
The SERAIN. Joins the Yonne.
_Germany._ SORNA, 8th cent. The ZORN.
_Switzerland._ The SUREN. Cant. Aargau.
_Naples._ SARNUS ant. The SARNO.
_Persia._ SARNIUS ant., now the Atrek.
The form _saras_, water, seems to be found in the following two names.
1. _With the ending en._
_France._ The SARSONNE. Dep. Corrèze.
2. _Compounded with wati = Goth. wato, water._
_India._ The SARASWATI, which still retains its ancient name.
And the Sansc. _sarit_, Gael. and Ir. _sroth_, _sruth_, a river, seem to
be found in the following.
_Ireland._ The SWORDS river near Dublin.
_France._ The SARTHE. Joins the Mayenne.
_Galicia._ The SERED. Joins the Dniester.
_Moldavia._ The SERETH. Ant. Ararus.
_Russia._ The SARAT(OVKA).[23] Gov. Saratov.
It would seem that the foregoing forms _sri_, _sru_, _srot_, sometimes
take a phonetic _t_, and become _stri_, _stru_, _strot_. Thus one Celtic
dialect, the Armorican, changes _sur_ into _ster_, and another, the
Cornish, changes _sruth_ into _struth_--both words signifying a river.
But indeed the natural tendency towards it is too obvious to require
much comment. Hence we may take the names Stry and Streu. But is the
form Stur from this source also? Förstemann finds an etymon in Old High
German _stur_, Old Norse _stôr_, great. This may obtain in the case of
some of the rivers of Scandinavia, but is hardly suited for those of
England and Italy, none of which are large. The root, moreover, seems
too widely spread, if, as I suspect, it is this which forms the ending
of many ancient names as the Cayster, the Cestrus, the Alster, Elster,
Ister, Danastris, &c. The Armorican _ster_, a river, seems to be the
word most nearly concerned.
1. _The form stry, stru, stur._
_England._ STURIUS (Ptolemy). The STOUR. There are six rivers
of this name.
_Germany._ STROWA, 8th cent. The STREU.
_Holstein._ STURIA, 10th cent. The STÖR.
_Italy._ STURA, two rivers.
STORAS (Strabo), now the ASTURA.
_Aust. Poland._ The STRY. Joins the Dniester.
The STYR. Joins the Pripet.
2. _The form struth._
_England._ The STROUD. Gloucester.
The STORT. Essex.
_Germany._ The UNSTRUT Förstemann places here, as far as the
ending _strut_ is concerned.
From the Sanscrit root _su_, liquere, come Sansc. _sava_, water, Old
High German _sou_, Lat. _succus_, moisture, Gael. _sûgh_, a wave, &c.;
(on the apparent resemblance between Sansc. _sava_, water and Goth.
_saivs_, sea, Diefenbach observes, we must not build). Hence I take to
be the following; but a word very liable to intermix is Gael. _sogh_,
tranquil; and where the character of stillness is very marked, I have
taken them under that head.
1. _England._ The SOW. Warwickshire.
_Ireland._ The SUCK. Joins the Shannon.
_France._ The SAVE. Joins the Garonne.
_Belgium._ SABIS, 1st cent. B.C., now the Sambre.
_Germany._ SAVUS ant. The SAVE or SAU.
The SÖVE. Joins the Elbe.
_Russia._ The SEVA.
_Italy._ The SAVIO. Pont. States.
The SIEVE. Joins the Arno.
2. _With the ending en._
_Italy._ The SAVENA or SAONA. Piedmont.
_Armenia._ The SEVAN. Lake.
3. _With the ending er._
_Ireland._ SEVERUS ant. The SUIRE.
_Germany._ SEVIRA, 9th cent. The ZEYER.
_France._ The SEVRE. Two rivers.
_Spain._ SUCRO ant. The XUCAR.
_Portugal._ The SABOR.
4. _With the ending rn (see note p. 34)._
_England._ SABRINA ant. The SEVERN.
_France._ The SEVRON. Dep. Saône-et-Loire.
_Russ. Pol._ The SAVRAN(KA). Gov. Podolia.
5. _With the ending es._
_Lombardy._ The SAVEZO near Milano.
In the Sanscrit _mih_, to flow, to pour, Old Norse _mîga_, scaturire,
Anglo-Saxon _migan_, _mihan_, to water, Sansc. _maighas_, rain, Old
Norse _mîgandi_, a torrent--("unde," says Haldorsen, "nomina propria
multorum torrentium"), Obs. Gael. and Ir. _machd_, a wave, I find the
root of the following. Most of the names are no doubt from the Celtic,
though the traces of the root are more faint in that tongue than in the
Teutonic. This I take to be the word, which in the forms _ma_, and _man_
or _men_, forms the ending of several river-names.
1. _Scotland._ The MAY. Perthshire.
_Ireland._ The MAIG and the MOY.
_Wales._ The MAY and the MAW.
_France._ The MAY.
_Siberia._ The MAIA. Joins the Aldon.
_India._ The MHYE. Bombay.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The MAWN. Notts.
The MEON. Hants. (Meôn eâ, _Cod. Dip._)
_Ireland._ The MAIN and the MOYNE.
_France._ The MAINE. Two rivers.
_Belgium._ The MEHAIGNE. Joins the Scheldt.
_Germany._ MOENUS ant. The MAIN.
_Sardinia._ The MAINA. Joins the Po.
_Siberia._ The MAIN. Joins the Anadyr.
_India._ The MEGNA. Prov. Bengal.
The MAHANUDDY--here?
3. _With the ending er._
_Italy._ The MAGRA. Falls into the Gulf of Genoa.
4. _With the ending el._
_England._ The MEAL. Shropshire.
_Denmark._ The MIELE. Falls into the German Ocean.
5. _With the ending st._[24]
_Asia Minor._ The MACESTUS. Joins the Rhyndacus.
From the root _mî_, to flow, come also Sansc. _mîras_, Lat. _mare_,
Goth. _marei_, Ang.-Sax. _mêr_, Germ. _meer_, Welsh _mar_, _mor_, Gael.
and Ir. _muir_, Slav. _morie_, &c., sea or lake. I should be more
inclined however to derive most of the following from the cognate Sansc.
_mærj_, to wash, to water, Lat. _mergo_, &c. Also, the Celtic _murg_, in
the more definite sense of a morass, may come in for some of the forms.
1. _France._ The MORGE. Dep. Isère.
_Germany._ MARUS (Tacitus). The MARCH, Slav. MOR(AVA).
MUORA, 8th cent. The MUHR.
MURRA, 10th cent. The MURR.
_Belgium._ MURGA, 7th cent. The MURG.
The MARK. Joins the Scheldt.
_Switzerland._ The MURG. Cant. Thurgau.
_Sardinia._ The MORA. Div. Novara.
_Servia._ MARGUS ant. The MORAVA.
_Italy._ The MARECCHIA. Pont. States--here?
_India._ The MERGUI--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Ireland._ The MOURNE. Ulster.
_Germany._ MARNE, 11th cent., now the MARE.
MERINA, 11th cent. The MÖRN.
3. _With the ending es._
_England._ The MERSEY. Lancashire.
_Germany._ MUORIZA, 10th cent. The MURZ.
_Dacia._ MARISUS ant. The MAROSCH.
_Phrygia._ MARSYAS ant.
Another form of Sansc. _marj_, to wet, to wash, is _masj_, whence I take
the following.
_Ireland._ MASK, a lake in Connaught.
_Russia._ The MOSK(VA), by Moscow, to which it gives the name.
From the Sanscrit _vag_ or _vah_, to move, comes _vahas_, course, flux,
current, cognate with which are Goth. _wegs_, Germ. _woge_, Eng. _wave_,
&c. An allied Celtic word is found as the ending of many British
river-names, as the Conway, the Medway, the Muthvey, the Elwy, &c. Hence
I take to be the following, in the sense of water or river.
1. _England._ The WEY. Dorset.
The WEY. Surrey.
_Hungary._ The WAAG. Joins the Danube.
_Russia._ The VAGA. Joins the Dwina.
The VAGAI and the VAKH in Siberia.
_India._ The VAYAH. Madras.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The WAVENEY. Norf. and Suffolk.
3. _With the ending er._
_England._ The WAVER. Cumberland.
4. _With the ending el._
_Netherlands._ VAHALIS, 1st cent. B.C. The WAAL.
5. _With the ending es = Sansc. vahas?_
_France._ VOGESUS ant. The VOSGES.
An allied form to the above is found in Sansc. _vi_, _vîc_, to move,
Lat. _via_, &c., and to which I put the following.
1. _England._ The WYE. Monmouthshire.
_Scotland._ The WICK. Caithness.
_France._ The VIE. Two rivers.
_Russia._ The VIG. Forms lake VIGO.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ VIGENNA ant. The VIENNE.
_Germany._ The WIEN, which gives the name to Vienna, (Germ.
Wien).
3. _With the ending er._
_Switzerland._ The WIGGER. Cant. Lucerne.
_France._ The VEGRE. Dep. Sarthe.
The VIAUR--probably here.
_Poland._ The WEGIER(KA).
_India._ The VEGIAUR, Madras--here?
Formed on the root _vi_, to move, is probably also the Sansc. _vip_ or
_vaip_, to move, to agitate, Latin _vibrare_, perhaps _vivere_, Old
Norse _vippa_, _vipra_, gyrare, Eng. _viper_, &c. I cannot trace in the
following the sense of rapidity, which we might suspect from the root.
Nor yet with sufficient distinctness the sense of tortuousness, so
strongly brought out in some of its derivatives.
1. _With the ending er._
_England._ The WEAVER. Cheshire.
The VEVER. Devonshire.
_Germany._ WIPPERA, 10th cent. The WIPPER (two rivers), and
the WUPPER.
2. _With the ending es._
_India._ VIPASA, the Sanscrit name of the Beas.
_Switzerland._ VIBSICUS ant. (properly Vibissus?) The VEVEYSE by
Vevay.
From the root _vip_, to move, taking the prefix _s_, is formed _swip_,
which I have dealt with in the next chapter.
In the Sansc. _par_, to move, we find the root of Gael. _beathra_
(pronounced _beara_), Old Celt. _ber_, water, Pers. _baran_, rain, &c.,
to which I place the following.
1. _England._ The BERE. Dorset.
_Ireland._ BARGUS (Ptolemy). The BARROW.
_France._ The BAR. Dep. Ardennes.
The BERRE. Dep. Aude.
_Germany._ The BAHR, the BEHR, the BEHRE, the PAAR.
2. _With the ending en._
_Bohemia._ The BERAUN near Prague.
_India._ The BEHRUN.
_Russia._ The PERNAU. Gulf of Riga.
From the Sansc. _plu_, to flow, Lat. _pluo_ and _fluo_, come Sansc.
_plavas_, flux, Lat. _pluvia_ and _fluvius_, Gr. {plynô}, lavo,
Ang.-Sax. _flôwe_, _flum_, Lat. _flumen_, river, &c. Hence we get the
following.
1. _Germany._ The PLAU, river and lake.[25] Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
_Holland._ FLEVO, 1st cent. The Zuiderzee, the outlet of which,
between Vlieland and Schelling, is still called
VLIE.
_Aust. Italy._ PLAVIS ant. The PIAVE, falls into the Adriatic.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ The PLAINE. Joins the Meurthe.
_Germany._ The PLONE. Joins the Haff.
The PLAN-SEE, a lake in the Tyrol.
_Holstein._ PLOEN. A lake.
_Poland._ The PLONNA. Prov. Plock.
From the above root come also the following, which compare with Sansc.
_plavas_, Mid. High Germ. _vlieze_, Mod. Germ. _fliess_, Old Fries.
_flêt_, Old Norse _fliot_, stream. And I think that some at least of
this group are German.
1. _England._ The FLEET. Joins the Trent.
The FLEET, now called the Fleetditch in London.
_Scotland._ The FLEET. Kirkcudbright.
_Germany._ BLEISA, 10th cent. The PLEISSE.
_Holland._ FLIETA, 9th cent. The VLIET.
_Russia._ The PLIUSA. Gulf of Finland.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ FLIEDINA, 8th cent. The FLIEDEN.
The FLIETN(ITZ). Pruss. Pom.
3. _With the ending st._
_Holland._ The VLIEST.
_Greece._ PLEISTUS ant., near Delphi.
There are two more forms from the same root, the former of which we may
refer to the Irish and Gael. _fluisg_, a flushing or flowing. The latter
shows a form nearest to the Ang.-Sax. and Old High Germ. _flum_, Lat.
_flumen_, though I think that the names must be rather Celtic.
1. _Ireland._ The FLISK. Falls into the Lake of Killarney.
_Germany._ The PLEISKE. Joins the Oder.
2. _England._ The PLYM, by Plymouth.
_Scotland._ The PALME, by Palmton.
_Siberia._ The PELYM. Gov. Tobolsk.
From the Sansc. _gam_, to go, is derived, according to Bopp and Monier
Williams, the name of the Ganges, in Sanscrit Gangâ. The word is in fact
the same as the Scotch "gang," which seems to be derived more
immediately from the Old Norse _ganga_. In the sense of "that which
goes," the Hindostanee has formed _gung_, a river, found in the names of
the Ramgunga, the Kishengunga, the Chittagong, and other rivers of
India. The same ending is found by Förstemann in the old names of one or
two German rivers, as the Leo near Salzburg, which in the 10th cent. was
called the LIUGANGA. Another name for the Ganges is the Pada, for which
Hindoo ingenuity has sought an origin in the myth of its rising from the
foot of Vishnoo. But as _pad_ and _gam_ in Sanscrit have both the same
meaning, viz., to go, I am inclined to suggest that the two names Ganga
and Pada may simply be synonymes of each other.
1. _India._ The GANGES. Sanscrit GANGA.
The GINGY. Pondicherry.
_Russia._ The KHANK(OVA). Joins the Don.
2. _With the ending et._
_Greece._ GANGITUS ant., in Macedonia.
The Sansc. verb _gam_, to go, along with its allied forms, is formed on
a simpler verb _gâ_, of the same meaning. To this I put the following.
1. _Holland._ The GOUW. Joins the Yssel.
_Persia._ CHOES or CHO(ASPES)[26] ant.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ GEWIN(AHA), 9th cent., now the JAHN(BACH).
3. _Compounded with ster, river._
_Asia Minor._ The CAYSTER and CESTRUS--here?
The Sansc. _ikh_, to move, must, I think, contain the root of the
following, though I find no derivatives in any sense nearer to that of
water or river.
1. _Russia._ The IK. Two rivers.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ ICENA (_Cod. Dip._) The ITCHEN.
_France._ ICAUNA ant. The IONNE.
3. _With the ending el._
_Moravia._ The IGLA or IGL(AWA).
_France._ The ECOLLE. Dep. Seine-et-Oise.
From the Sansc. _dravas_, flowing, are derived, according to Bopp, the
Drave and the Trave. The root-verb is, I presume, _drâ_, to move. Hence
I have suggested, p. 37, may be the Welsh _dwr_, water.
1. _Scotland._ The TARF, several small rivers--here?
_Germany._ DRAVUS, 1st cent. The DRAVE, Germ. DRAU.
_Italy._ The TREBBIA. Joins the Po.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ TRAVENA, 10th cent., now the TRAVE.
TREWINA, 9th cent. The DRAN.
DRONA, 9th cent. The DRONE.
TRUNA, 7th cent. The TRAUN.
_France._ The DRONNE. Joins the Isle.
In the Sansc. _dram_, to move, to run, Gr. {dremô}, whence _dromedary_,
&c., is to be found the root of the following. But _dram_, as I take it,
is an interchanged form with the preceding _drav_, as _amon_ = _avon_,
&c., _ante_.
1. _Scotland._ The TROME and the TRUIM. Inverness.
_France._ The DROME and the DARME.
_Belgium._ The DURME.
_Germany._ The DARM, by Darmstadt.
2. _With the ending en._
_Norway._ The DRAMMEN. Christiania Fjord.
Another word of the same meaning as the last, and perhaps allied in its
root, is Sansc. _trag_, to run, Gr. {trechô}, Goth. _thragjan_. It will
be observed that the above Greek verb mixes up in its tenses with the
obsolete verb {dremô} of the preceding group. In all these words
signifying to run there may be something of rapidity, though I am not
able to remove them out of this category.
1. _France._ The DRAC. Joins the Isère.
_Prussia._ The DRAGE.
_Greece._ TRAGUS ant.
_Italy._ The TREJA. Joins the Tiber.
2. _With the ending en._
_Sicily._ The TRACHINO. Joins the Simeto.
The Sansc. _il_, to move, Gr. {heilô}, Old High Germ. _ilen_, Swed.
_ila_, Mod. Germ. _eilen_, to hasten, Fr. _aller_, &c., is a very widely
spread root in river-names.
1. _England._ The ILE. Somerset.
The ALLOW. Northumberland.
_France._ The ILL, the ILLE, and the ELLÉ.
_Germany._ ILLA, 9th cent. The ILL.
IL(AHA), 11th cent. The IL(ACH).
The ALLE. Prussia.
_Italy._ ALLIA ant., near Rome.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ ALAUNUS (Ptolemy). Perhaps the AXE.
The ALNE, two rivers.
The ELLEN. Cumberland.
_Scotland._ The ALLAN, two rivers.
_Ireland._ The ILEN. Cork.
_France._ The AULNE. Dep. Finistère.
3. _With the ending er._
_Germany._ ALARA, 8th cent. The ALLER.
ILARA, 10th cent. The ILLER.
_Piedmont._ The ELLERO.
From the above root _al_ or _il_, to move, to go, I take to be the Gael.
_ald_ or _alt_, a stream, (an older form of which, according to
Armstrong, is _aled_); and the Old Norse _allda_, Finnish _aalto_, a
wave, billow. As an ending this word is found in the NAGOLD of Germany
(ant. NAGALTA), and in the HERAULT of France, Dep. Herault. Förstemann
makes the former word _nagalt_, and remarks on it as "unexplained." It
seems to me to be a compound word, of which the former part is probably
to be found in the root _nig_ or _nî_, p. 47.
1. _England._ The ALDE. Suffolk.
The ALT. Lancashire.
_France._ OLTIS ant., now the Lot.
_Germany._ The ELD. Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
_Spain._ The ELDA.
_Russia._ The ALTA. Gov. Poltova.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ ALDENA, 11th cent., now the Olle.
_Norway._ The ALTEN.
_Siberia._ The ALDAN. Joins the Lena.
Also from the root _al_ or _il_, to move, I take to be the Old Norse
_elfa_, Dan. _elv_, Swed. _elf_, a river. The river {Alpis} mentioned in
Herodotus is supposed by Mannert to be the Inn by Innsbrück. I think the
able Editor of Smith's Ancient Geography has scarcely sufficient ground
for his supposition that Herodotus, in quoting the Alpis and Carpis as
rivers, confounded them with the names of mountains. The former, it will
be seen, is an appellative for a river; the latter is found in the name
Carpino, of an affluent of the Tiber, and might be from the Celt.
_garbh_, violent; a High Germ. element, for instance, would make _garbh_
into _carp_. But indeed the form _carp_ is that which comes nearest to
the original root, if I am correct in supposing it to be the Sansc.
_karp_, Lat. _carpo_, in the sense of violent action. In the following
list I should be inclined to take the names Alapa, Elaver, and Ilavla,
as nearest to the original form.
1. _Germany._ ALBIS, 1st cent. The ELBE. Also the ALB in Baden, and
the ALF in Pomerania.
ALPIS (Herodotus), perhaps the Inn.
ALAPA, 8th cent., now the Wölpe.
The AUPE. Joins the Elbe.
_France._ ALBA ant., now the AUBE.
The AUVE. Dep. Marne.
The HELPE. Joins the Sambre.
_Greece._ ALPHEUS ant., now the Rufio--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Scotland._ The ELVAN. Joins the Clyde.
_Germany._ ALBANA, 8th cent., now the ALBEN.
_Tuscany._ ALBINIA ant. The ALBEGNA.
3. _With the ending er._
_France._ ELAVER ant., now the Allier.
4. _With the ending el._
_Germany._ ALBLA, 11th cent., not identified.
_Italy._ ALBULA, the ancient name of the Tiber.
_Russia._ The ILAVLA. Joins the Don.
Förstemann seems to me to be right in his conjecture that the forms
_alis_, _els_, _ils_, are also extensions of the root _al_, _el_, _il_.
We see the same form in Gr. {helissô}, an extension of {heilô}, and
having just the same meaning of verso, volvo. Indeed I think that this
word, which we find specially applied to rivers, is the one most
concerned in the following names, two of which, it will be seen
moreover, belong to Greece. Hence may perhaps be derived the name of the
Elysii, (wanderers?) a German tribe mentioned in Tacitus. And through
them, of many names of men, as the Saxon Alusa and Elesa, down to our
own family names Alice and Ellice.[27]
1. _France._ The ALISE.
_Germany._ ELZA, 10th cent., now the ELZ.
ILSA ant., now the ILSE.
The ALASS. Falls into the Gulf of Riga.
_Greece._ ILISSUS ant., still retains its name.
_Asia Minor._ HALYS ant., now the Kizil-Irmak.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ ELISON, 3rd cent., now the Lise.
_Belgium._ ALISNA, 7th cent., not identified.
_Greece._ ELLISON or HELISSON ant.
3. _With the ending es._
_Germany._ ALZISSA, 9th cent., now the ALZ.
ILZISA, 11th cent., now the ILZ.
The root _sal_ Förstemann takes to be Celtic, and to mean salt water. No
doubt saltness is a characteristic which would naturally give a name to
a river. So it does in the case of the "Salt River" in the U.S., and of
the Salza in the Salzkammergut. But I can hardly think that all the
many rivers called the SAALE are salt, and I am inclined to go deeper
for the meaning. The Sansc. has _sal_, to move, whence _salan_, water.
The first meaning then seems to be water--applied to the sea as _the_
water--and then to salt as derived from the sea. So that when the Gr.
{als}, the Old Norse _salt_, and the Gael. _sal_, all mean both salt,
and also the sea, the latter may be the original sense. From the above
root, _sal_, to move, the Lat. forms both _salire_ and _saltare_, as
from the same root come _sal_ and _salt_. I take the root _sal_ then in
river-names to mean, at least in some cases, water. In one or two
instances the sense of saltness comes before us as a known quality, and
in such case I have taken the names elsewhere. But failing the proper
proof, which would be that of tasting, I must leave the others where
they stand.
1. _Germany._ SALA, 1st cent. Five rivers called the SAALE.
SALIA, 8th cent. The SEILLE.
_France._ The SELLÉ. Two rivers.
_Russia._ The SAL. Joins the Don.
_Spain._ SALO ant., now the XALON.
2. _With the ending en = Sansc. salan, water?_
_Ireland._ The SLAAN and the SLANEY.
_France._ The SELUNE. Dep. Manche.
It is possible that the root _als_, _ils_, found in the name of several
rivers, as the ALZ, ELZ, ILSE, may be a transposition of the above, just
as Gr. {als} = Lat. _sal_. But upon the whole I have thought another
derivation better, and have included them in a preceding group.
From the Sansc. _var_ or _vars_, to bedew, moisten, whence _var_, water,
_varsas_, rain, Gr. {ersê}, dew, Gael. and Ir. _uaran_, fresh water, I
get the following, dividing them into the two forms, _var_ and _vars_.
_The form var._
1. _England._ The VER. Herts.
_France._ VIRIA ant. The VIRE.
_Germany._ The WERRE in Thuringia.
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ WARINNA, 8th cent. The WERN.
The WARN(AU). Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
_Naples._ VARANO,[28] a lagoon on the Adriatic shore.
_The form vars._
1. _England._ The WORSE. Shropshire.
_France._ The OURCE. Joins the Seine.
_Germany._ The WERS. Joins the EMS.
_Italy._ ARSIA ant.--here?
VARESE. Lake in Lombardy.
_Persia._ AROSIS ant., now the Tab--here?
_Armenia._ ARAXES[29] ant., now the ARAS--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ URSENA, 8th cent., now the OERTZE.
_Asia Minor._ ORSINUS ant., now the Hagisik--here?
3. _With the ending el._
_Germany._ URSELA, 8th cent. The URSEL.
HÖRSEL. Joins the Werre.
In the above Sansc. _var_, to moisten, to water, is contained, as I take
it, the root of the Finnic _wirta_, a river, the only appellative I can
find for the following.
1. _Germany._ WERT(AHA), 10th cent., now the WERT(ACH).
_Poland._ The WARTA. Joins the Oder.
_Denmark._ The VARDE. Prov. Jütland.
_India._ The WURDAH. Joins the Godavery.
2. _With the ending en._
_France._ The VERDON. Dep. Var.
3. _With the ending er._
_Ireland._ The VARTREY. Wicklow.
_France._ The VARDRE.
_Europ. Turkey._ The VARDAR, ant. Axius.
The following names have been generally supposed to be derived from
Welsh _cledd_ or _cleddeu_, sword, and to be applied metaphorically to a
river. But I think it will be seen from the Sansc. _klid_, to water,
whence _klaidan_, flux, Gr. {klydôn}, fluctus, unda, Ang.-Sax. _glade_,
a river, brook, that the meaning of water lies at the very bottom of the
word. Perhaps, however, as the senses of a running stream and of a sharp
point often run parallel to each other, there may be in this case a
relationship between them.
1. _Scotland._ The CLYDE. (CLOTA, Ptolemy.)
_Wales._ The CLOYD, the CLWYD, and the CLEDDEU.
_Ireland._ The GLYDE.
_Greece._ CLADEUS ant.--here?
_Umbria._ CLIT(UMNUS)[30] ant.--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ The KLODN(ITZ). Pruss. Silesia.
3. _With the ending er._
_Greece._ The CLITORA in Arcadia, on which stood the ancient
Clitorium.
_Asia Min._ CLUDROS ant., in Caria.
There are two Sanscrit roots from which the word _ag_, _ang_, _ing_, in
river-names might be deduced. One is the verb _ag_ or _aj_, to move,
whence _anjas_, movement, (or the verb _ac_ or _anc_, to traverse), and
the other is the verb _ag_ or _ang_, to contract, whence Latin _anguis_,
snake, _anguilla_, eel, Eng. _angle_, &c. The sense then might be either
the ordinary one of motion, the root-meaning of most river names, or it
might be the special sense of tortuousness. But as the only appellative
I can find is the word _anger_, a river, in the Tcheremissian dialect of
the Finnic (Bonaparte polyglott), I think it safer to follow the most
common sense, though the other may not improbably intermix. The
derivation of Mone, from Welsh _eog_, salmon, I do not think of.
1. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ ANKIN(AHA), 8th cent., now the ECKN(ACH).
_France._ The INGON. Dep. Somme.
2. _With the ending er._
_England._ The ANKER. Leicestershire.
_Germany._ ACKARA, 10th cent. The AGGER.
AGARA, 8th cent. The EGER.
The ANGERAP (_ap_, water), Prussia.
_Siberia._ The ANGERA.
_Italy._ ACARIS ant. The AGRI.
_Servia?_ ANGRUS (Herodotus).
_India._ The AGHOR--here?
3. _With the ending el._
_Germany._ The ANGEL, three rivers (Baden, Westphalia, and Bohemia).
_Russia._ The INGUL. Joins the Bug.
4. _With the ending st._
_Germany._ AGASTA,[31] 8th cent., now the AISS.
From the Sansc. _pî_, to drink, also to give to drink, to water, Gr.
{piô}, {pinô}, we may get a form _pin_ in river-names.
1. _Germany._ The PEEN in Prussia.
_Holstein._ The PINAU. Joins the Elbe.
_Hungary._ The PINA. Joins the Pripet.
The PINKA--here?[32]
_Russia._ The PIANA. Joins the Volga.
The PINE(GA). Joins the Dwina.
_India._ The BINOA. Joins the Beas.
_Greece._ PENEUS ant. Two rivers--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Siberia._ The PENJINA.
3. _With the ending er._
_India._ The PENNAR. Madras.
4. _With the ending es._
_Russia._ The PENZA. Joins the Sura.
From the above Sansc. _pi_ we may also derive the form _pid_. The only
appellative I find, (if it can be called one), is the Ang.-Sax.
_pidele_, a thin stream, given by Kemble in the glossary to the _Cod.
Dip._; and hence the name PIDDLE, of several small streams. The only
name I find in the simple form, and that uncertain, is the PINDUS of
Greece. Then there is a form _peder_, which seems to be from a definite
word, and not from the simple suffix _er_.
1. _England._ The PEDDER. Somerset.
_Greece._ PYDARAS ant. Thrace.
_India._ The PINDAR--here?
2. _With the ending en._
_Scotland._ The PITREN(ICK), a small stream in Lanarkshire.
3. _With the ending el._
_England._ The PETTERIL in Cumberland.
4. _With the ending et._
_England._ PÊDREDE (_Cod. Dip._) Now the PARRET.
Also from the Sansc. root _pi_, to drink, to water, we get the form
_bib_ or _pip_, as found in Lat. _bibo_, and in Sansc. _pipâsas_, toper.
Here also in the simple form I only find one name--the BEUVE in France,
Dep. Gironde. In the form _biber_ there are many names, particularly in
Germany. Graff (_Sprachschatz_), seems to refer the word to _biber_,
beaver, but Förstemann, with more reason, as I think, suggests a lost
word for water or river.
1. _England._ The PEVER. Cheshire.
_Scotland._ The PEFFER. Ross-shire.
_France._ The BIÈVRE. Joins the Seine.
_Germany._ BIBER(AHA), 7th cent. The BEVER, the BIBRA, the
PEBR(ACH), and the BIBER(BACH).
2. _With the ending en._
_Germany._ BIVERAN, 8th cent., now the BEVER.
_France._ The BEUVRON. Dep. Nièvre.
Perhaps also from the root _pi_ we may derive the Ir. _buinn_, river,
_bual_, _biol_, water. From the former Mr. Charnock derives the name of
the Boyne, a derivation which I think suitable, even if we take the
ancient form Buvinda, (_Zeuss, Gramm. Celt._,) which might be more
properly Buvinna, as Gironde for Garonne in France. For the Bunaha in
Germany, the Old Norse _buna_, scaturire, might also be suggested.
_Ireland._ The BOYNE.
_Germany._ BUN(AHA), 9th cent., now the BAUN(ACH).
From the Ir. _biol_, _buol_, I derive the following, keeping out the
rivers of the Slavonic districts, which may be referred to the Slav.
_biala_, white.
1. _England._ The BEELA. Westmoreland.
_Ireland._ The BOYLE, of which, according to O'Brien, the Irish
form is BUIL.
_France._ The BOL(BEC). Dep. Seine-Inf.
_Germany._ BOLL(AHA) ant. Not identified.
_Asia Minor._ BILLÆUS ant., now the Filyas.
2. _With the ending er._
_Germany._ The BUHLER. Wirtemberg.
_Russia._ The BULLER.
3. _With the ending et._
_Germany._ The BULLOT. Baden.
_Russia._ The POLOTA. Joins the Dwina.
A very obscure root in river-names is _gog_ or _cock_. The only
appellatives I find are in the Celtic, viz., Gael. _caochan_, a small
stream, Arm. _goagen_, wave; unless we think also of the word _jokk_,
_jöggi_, which in the Finnic dialects signifies a river; and in that
case the most probable root would be the Sansc. _yug_, to gush forth. To
the river Coquet, in Northumberland, something of a sacred character
seems to have been ascribed; an altar having been discovered bearing the
inscription "Deo Cocidi," and supposed to have been dedicated to the
genius of that river. Again, we are reminded of the Cocytus in Greece,
a tributary of the river Acheron, invested with so many mysterious
terrors as supposed to be under the dominion of the King of Hades.
Possibly, however, it might only be the similarity, or identity, of the
names which transferred to the one something of the superstitious
reverence paid to the other. At all events, I can find nothing in the
etymology to bear out such a meaning.
1. _England._ COCBRÔC (_Cod. Dip._) This would seem to have
probably been a small stream called Cock, to
which, as in many other cases, the Saxons added
the word brook.
2. _Germany._ COCHIN(AHA), 8th cent., now the KOCHER.[33]
3. _With the ending er._
_England._ The COCKER. Cumberland.
The COKER. Lancashire.
_India._ The KOHARY--here?
4. _With the ending el._
_Transylvania._ The KOKEL, two rivers.
_England._ COCKLEY-BECK.[34] Cumberland.
_Germany._ CHUCHILIBACH, now Kuchelbach.
5. _With the ending et._
_England._ The COQUET. Northumberland.
_Greece._ COCYTUS ant., now the Vuvo.
6. _In a compound form._
_England._ The CUCKMARE, Sussex, with the word _mar_, p. 61.
From the Sansc. _mid_, to soften, to melt, (perhaps formed on the root
_mi_, p. 59), come Sansc. _miditas_, fluid, Lat. _madidus_, wet. Herein
seems a sufficient root for river-names, but there is another which is
apt to intermix, Sansc. _math_, to move, whence, I take it, and not from
the former is Old Norse _môda_, a river. I separate a form _med_ or
_mid_, in which the sense of _medius_, and also that of _mitis_, is in
some cases clearly brought out; and another, _muth_ or _muot_, which,
though from the same root, as I take it, as _môda_, a river, (_math_, to
move), has more evidently the sense of speed.
1. _Germany._ MOTA, 8th cent., now the MEDE or MEHE.
2. _With the ending er._
_England._ The MADDER. Wiltshire.
_Germany._ MATRA, 8th cent., now the MODER.
_Italy._ METAURUS ant., the METAURO--here?
3. _With the ending ern._
_France._ MATR[)O]NA[35] ant., now the Marne.
_Italy._ MATRINUS ant. in Picenum.
4. _With the ending el._
_Germany._ The MADEL.
The only appellative for a river which I find derived from its sound is
the Sanscrit _nadi_, Hind. _nuddy_, from _nad_, sonare. Whether the
following names should come in here may be uncertain; I can find no
links between them and the Sanscrit; perhaps the root _nid_, p. 54, may
be suitable.
1. _France._ NODA ant., now the Noain.
2. _With the ending er._
_England._ The NODDER. (Noddre, _Cod. Dip._)
_Hungary._ The NEUTRA. Joins the Danube.
3. _With the ending es._
_Venetia._ NATISO ant., now the NATISONE.
The only words I can find at all bearing upon the following river-names
are the Serv. _jezor_, Bohem. and Illyr. _jezero_, lake, wherein may
probably lie a word _jez_, signifying water. But respecting its
etymology I am entirely in the dark.
1. _Germany._ JAZ(AHA), 8th cent., now the JOSS.
JEZ(AWA), 11th cent., a brook near Lobenstein.
The JETZA. Joins the Elbe.
The JESS(AVA). Joins the Danube.
2. _With the ending er._
_Russia._ The JISDRA. Joins the Oka.
3. _Compounded with main, river._
_Russia._ The JESMEN. Gov. Tchnerigov.
Another word, of which the belongings are not clearly to be traced, is
the Armorican _houl_, _houlen_, unda, to which we may put the following.
1. _England._ The HULL. Joins the Humber.
_Finland._ The ULLEA. Gulf of Bothnia.
_Spain._ The ULLA in Galicia.
2. _Compounded with ster, river._
_Germany._ ULSTRA, 9th cent., now the ULSTER.
In the Irish and Obs. Gael. _dothar_, water, Welsh _diod_, drink,
_diota_, to tipple--with which we may perhaps also connect the Lapp.
_dadno_, river, Albanian {det}, sea, and Rhæt. _dutg_, torrent, we may
find the root of the following.
1. _Germany._ The DUYTE. Joins the Hase.
The DUDE, a small stream in Prussia.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The DUDDON. Lake district.
3. _With the ending er._
_Ireland._ The DODDER.
4. _Compounded with mal._[36]
_Germany._ DUTHMALA, 8th cent., now the DOMMEL.
From the Welsh _wyl_, Ang.-Sax. _wyllan_, Eng. _well_, to flow or gush,
(Sansc. _vail_, to move?), we got the following.
1. _England._ The WILLY. Wiltshire.
_Denmark._ The VEILE, in Jutland.
_Norway._ The VILLA.
_Russia._ The VEL. Joins the Vaga.
The VILIA. Joins the Niemen.
The VILIU, (Siberia). Joins the Lena.
2. _With the ending en._
_England._ The WELLAND, (properly Wellan?)
_Russia._ The VILNA. Gov. Minsk.
_Italy._ The VELINO. Joins the Nera.
3. _With the ending er._
_India._ The VELLAUR, Madras--here?
4. _With the ending s._
_Germany._ The VILS, two rivers in Bavaria.
The WELSE. Joins the Oder.
_Spain._ The VELEZ. Prov. Malaga.
A word which appears to have the meaning of water or river, but
respecting the etymology of which I am quite ignorant, is _asop_ or
_asp_. That it has the above meaning I infer only from finding it as the
second part of the word in the ancient river-names Cho(aspes),
Hyd(aspes), and Zari(aspis). In an independent form it occurs in the
following. Lhuyd, (in the appendix to Baxter's glossary), referring to
Hespin as the name of sundry small streams in Wales, derives it from
_hespin_, a sheep that yields no milk, because these streams are almost
dry in summer. This derivation is unquestionably false so far as this,
that the two words are merely derived from the same origin, viz., Welsh
_hesp_ or _hysp_, dry, barren. But whether this word has anything to do
with the following names is doubtful; it seems at any rate unsuitable
for the large rivers, such as the Hydaspes, (the Jhylum of the Punjaub).
From the derivation of Mone, who finds in Isper, as in Wipper, p. 64, a
word _per_, mountain, I entirely dissent.
1. _France._ The ASPE. Basses--Pyrenees.
_Germany._ HESAPA ant., now the HESPER.
_Greece._ ASOPUS ant. Two rivers.
2. _With the ending er._
_Germany._ ISPERA, 10th cent. The ISPER.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Ilchester (=Ivel-chester) situated on this river, is called in
Ptolemy Ischalis, from which we may presume that the river was called
the Ischal, a word which would be a synonyme of Ivel.
[2] It seems rather probable that the ending _es_ in these names is not
a mere suffix. The APSARUS, ancient name of the Tchoruk in Armenia, and
the IPSALA in Europ. Turkey, by superadding the endings _er_ and _el_,
go to show this. We might perhaps presume a Sansc. word _abhas_, or
_aphas_, with the meaning of river.
[3] This ending is not explained. Zeuss, comparing the endings _er_ and
_st_, suggests a comparative and superlative, which is not probable. In
the present, as in some other cases, I take it to be only a phonetic
form of _ss_, and make Ambastus properly Ambassus. But in some other
cases, as that of the Nestus, which compares with Sansc. _nisitas_,
fluid, it seems to be formative.
[4] This looks like a mistake for Acasse.
[5] So that there _is_ a river in Monmouth, and another in Macedon.
[6] "Hysa nunc fluvii nomen est, qui antiquitus Hysara dicebatur."
(_Folcuin. Gest. Abb. Lobiens._) This seems not improbably to refer to
the Oise.
[7] If, as Pott suggests, the Vedra of Ptolemy = Eng. _water_, the
Wetter would naturally come in here also. But some German writers, as
Roth and Weigand, connect it with Germ. _wetter_, Eng. _weather_, in the
sense, according to the first-named, of the river which is affected by
rain.
[8] This ending may either be formed by the addition of a phonetic _n_
to the ending _er_; or it may be from a word _ren_, channel, river,
hereafter noticed.
[9] The Scotch ETTRICK and the Germ. EITRACH I take to be synonymous,
though the ending in one case is German, and in the other probably
Gaelic. (_See p. 25_)
[10] Hence perhaps Anitabha (_abha_, water), the Sansc. name of a river,
not identified, in India.
[11] Tacitus gives this name to the Avon--in mistake, as the Editor of
Smith's Ancient Geography suggests. But _anton_ and _avon_ seem to have
been synonymous words for a river.
[12] Hence the name of Dover, anc. Dubris, according to Richard of
Cirencester, from the small stream which there falls into the sea.
[13] Where is this river, cited by Zeuss, (_Gramm. Celt._)?
[14] Hence probably the name of Zurich, ant. Turicum.
[15] Perhaps formed from _ez_ by a phonetic _n_.
[16] I do not in this case make any account of the spelling; the name is
just the same as our Lee, and the idea of _lys_, a lily, is no doubt
only suggested by the similarity of sound.
[17] Manual of Comparative Philology.
[18] Niebuhr derives this name from a Sabine word signifying sulphur,
which is largely contained in its waters. Mr. Charnock suggests the
Ph[oe]n. _naharo_, a river.
[19] Niemen may perhaps = Nieven--_m_ for _v_, as in Amon for Avon, p.
26.
[20] Perhaps to be found in Sansc. _nistas_, wet, fluid. Here we get
something of a clue to Eng. "nasty," the original meaning of which has
no doubt been nothing but water "in the wrong place."
[21] "One of the sacred rivers of India, a river mentioned in the Veda,
and famous in the epic poems as the river of Ayodhyâ, one of the
earliest capitals of India, the modern Oude."--_Max Müller, Science of
Language._
[22] I place this here on the authority of Max Müller, who, pointing out
that the initial _h_ in Persian corresponds with a Sanscrit _s_, thinks
that the river Sarayu may have given the name to the river Arius or
Heri, and to the country of Herat.
[23] This name seems formed at thrice--first Sarit--then ov, (perhaps
_av_ river)--lastly, the Slavish affix _ka_.
[24] See note p. 29.
[25] In the more special sense of lake, which, it will be observed, is
frequent in this group, is the Suio-Lapp. _pluewe_.
[26] The word _asp_ comes before us in some other river-names, but
respecting its etymology I am quite in the dark. From the way in which
it occurs in the above, in the Zari(aspis), and in the Hyd(aspes), it
seems rather likely to have the meaning of water or river.
[27] Also ALLISON and ELLISON, which may be either patronymic forms in
_son_; or formed with the ending in _en_, like the above river-names.
For the names of rivers, and the ancient names of men, in many points
run parallel to each other.
[28] Following strictly the above Celt. word _uaran_, this might be
"Fresh-water Bay."
[29] The Araxes of Herodotus, observes the Editor of Smith's Ancient
Geography, "cannot be identified with any single river: the name was
probably an appellative for a river, and was applied, like our Avon, to
several streams, which Herodotus supposed to be identical." Araxes I
take to be a Græcism, and the Mod. name Aras to show the proper form.
[30] Containing the Latin _amnis_, river, or only a euphonic form of
Clitunnus? See Garumna, p. 13.
[31] I think that in this, as probably in some other cases, _st_ is only
a phonetic form of _ss_, and that the Mod. name _Aiss_ points truly to
the ancient form as _Agass_, see note, p. 29.
[32] I should without hesitation have taken the PINKA, as well as the
Russian PINEGA, to be from this root, with the Slavonic affix _ga_ or
_ka_. But the English river PENK in Staffordshire introduces an element
of doubt. It may, however, also be from this root, with the ending _ick_
common in the rivers of Scotland. See p. 25.
[33] This river seems also to have been called anciently CHOCHARA.
[34] Here also, as in the case of the German Chuchilibach, and the
Cocbrôc before noted, the ending beck (= brook), seems to have been
added to the original name. Chuchilibach appears as the name of a place,
but I apprehend that the word implies a stream of the same name.
[35] I think that these quantities, so far as they are derived from the
Latin poets, should be accepted with some reserve. Unless more
self-denying than most of their craft, I fear that they would hardly let
a Gallic river stand in the way of a lively dactyl.
[36] I do not know any other instance of this ending in river-names, but
I take it to be, like _man_ or _main_, an extension of _may_, and to
signify water or river.