*geldą

Reconstruction

The noun is *geldą in Wiktionary,^[1] *ʒelđan in Orel^[2] and *gelda- in Kroonen and Köbler.^[3][4] De Vries gives a Proto-Norse *gelda-.^[5]

Etymology

Kroonen and Wiktionary set it beside the strong verb *geldaną "to pay",^[3][1] which is from Proto-Indo-European *gʰeldʰ- (“to repay, to pay”): Kroonen reconstructs a present *gʰeldʰ-e-, a European word with cognates only in Celtic and Slavic.^[6]

Morphology

A neuter a-stem.^[4][2]

Evidence

The word is attested in all three branches: Gothic 𐌲𐌹𐌻𐌳 (gild, “tax”), Old Norse gjald, and Old English gield, Old Frisian jeld, Old Saxon geld and Old High German gelt in West Germanic.^[3] The Gothic noun occurs once, in the accusative at Luke 20:22,^[7] and in 𐌺𐌰𐌹𐍃𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌲𐌹𐌻𐌳 (kaisaragild, “tax to Caesar”).^[8] Holthausen adds two Gothic personal names formed with it.^[9]

Competing analyses

For the verb, Kroonen compares Old Church Slavonic жлѣсти (žlěsti, “to pay, to compensate”) and Old Irish gell (“pledge”), and rejects Ancient Greek τέλθος (télthos, “debt”), which would point to *gʷʰeldʰ-os-.^[6][10] Wiktionary says the Slavic verb may be an early loan from Germanic, and that the pre-Germanic root may have to be *gʰelt-;^[10] de Vries also thought the Slavic word probably borrowed from Germanic.^[5] Orel takes it as related despite the different suffixes, since an Old Swedish form points to a Germanic *ʒélþanan with -þ-.^[2]

Meanings

1. payment, compensation^[3]
2. reward, gift, money^[4][1]

Gothic used the word for "tax, interest",^[8] Old Norse for "payment, wage, punishment, tax",^[5] Old English also for "sacrifice, worship" and "guild",^[11] and Old Frisian for "wergild".^[12]

Derivatives

• *gelstrą "tax, tribute, offering",^[13] Orel's *ʒelstran, a derivative in *-stro-.^[14]
• *ʒelđōn "guild member".^[14]

Reflexes

• Gothic: 𐌲𐌹𐌻𐌳 (gild, “tax, interest”)^[8]
• Old Norse: gjald (“payment, wage, punishment, tax”)^[5]
• Old English: gield (“payment, tribute, tax, sacrifice, guild”)^[11]
• Old Frisian: jeld (“money, sum of money, wergild”)^[12]
• Old Saxon: geld (“payment, reward, sacrifice”)^[15]
• Old High German: gelt (“tax, interest, fine, payment, offering”)^[16]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *geldą
2. ^ a b c Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 130
3. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 174
4. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *gelda-
5. ^ a b c d de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 169
6. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 173
7. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Gotisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gild
8. ^ a b c Feist, Sigmund (1939), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der gotischen Sprache, 3rd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. s.v. gild
9. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Gotisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. gild
10. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *geldaną
11. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gield
12. ^ a b Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. jeld
13. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *gelstrą
14. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 131
15. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. geld
16. ^ Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. s.v. gelt