*geldan

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *geldan for Proto-West Germanic.^[1] It continues inherited from Proto-Germanic *geldaną (“to pay (for)”),^[2][3] which Kroonen cites by its stem *geldan-, Orel as *ʒelđanan and Köbler as *geldan, *gelþan.^[3][4][5] Ringe and Taylor trace it through pre-Old English *ġeldan, with a palatalized initial, to West Saxon Old English ġieldan, Mercian ġeldan and Northumbrian ġelda, with the West Saxon diphthongization of front vowels after initial palatals.^[6]

Morphology

A strong verb of class III.^[7][8] Old High German has the present giltu, the past galt, plural gultum, and the past participle gigoltan.^[8]

Evidence

The verb has counterparts in all the Germanic languages: Old Saxon geldan, Old Frisian jelda, Old English ġieldan, and in Gothic only the prefixed verbs.^[8] Old High German geltan is recorded from the 8th or 9th century in glosses and literary works.^[8] Old Dutch has only a prefixed form, from which Köbler reconstructs *geldan.^[9]

Competing analyses

Orel derives Old Swedish gjalla (“to repay”) from *ʒélþanan, so that the Germanic *-đ- would continue a PIE *-t-.^[4] EWA holds that all the Germanic forms can go back to *gelđan-, and that the Swedish forms with ⟨-ll-⟩ need no variant *gelþan- with grammatical change, since they can be later assimilations of ⟨ld⟩ to ⟨ll⟩.^[8]

Meanings

1. to pay (for)^[2][1]

Old English also used the verb for "to reward", "to worship, to serve" and "to sacrifice",^[10] Old Frisian for "to compensate", "to atone", "to pay wergild" and "to be worth",^[11] and Old High German for "to give back", "to atone" and "to sacrifice".^[8]

Derivatives

• *geld "payment", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[12] Orel relates the Proto-Germanic noun *ʒelđan "payment, tribute" to the verb.^[4]
• *geldō "payer", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[13] Köbler sets up a Proto-Germanic *geldō- "payer" beside the verb.^[14]
• *frageldan "to pay back, to repay", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[15] Köbler lists the prefixed verb in Gothic, Old English, Old Frisian, Old Dutch, Old Saxon and Old High German.^[16]
• *gelstr "tribute, offering", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[17] Orel takes Proto-Germanic *ʒelstran, the source of Old High German gelstar, for a derivative with the suffix *-stro-.^[18]

Reflexes

• Old English: ġieldan (“to pay, to reward, to worship, to serve, to sacrifice”)^[10]
• Old Frisian: jelda (“to pay, to compensate, to atone, to be worth”)^[11]
• Old Saxon: geldan (“to pay, to reward, to repay”)^[7]
• Old High German: geltan (“to pay, to give, to repay, to atone, to sacrifice”)^[8]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *geldan
2. ^ a b Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 216
3. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 173
4. ^ a b c Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 130
5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *geldan
6. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 215–216
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. geldan
8. ^ a b c d e f g 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. geltan
9. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *geldan?
10. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. gieldan
11. ^ a b Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. jelda
12. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *geld
13. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *geldō
14. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *geldō-
15. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *frageldan
16. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *fargeldan
17. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *gelstr
18. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 131