*hlid

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *hlid "lid, cover" for Proto-West Germanic.^[1] Boutkan and Siebinga set up the same form, *hlid, for Pre-Frisian.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *hlidą (“lid, cover”),^[1][2] which Seebold cites as *hlid-a-m "closure" and Köbler as *hliþa- or *hlida-.^[3][4] EWA traces most of the Germanic forms to *χliđa-, but Old High German lid to *χliþa-, and takes the noun for a derivative of the strong verb *χlīđe/a- "to close", continued in Old Saxon -hlīdan and Old English -hlīdan.^[5]

Morphology

A neuter a-stem.^[4][6][5]

Evidence

The noun is attested as Old English hlid, Old Frisian hlid, Old Saxon hlid and Old High German lit.^[5][7] Old Frisian also has lid, in which the initial cluster is reduced, and the spelling lhit.^[2] Old High German has the word in glosses from the second half of the 9th century, glossing Latin operculum and cooperculum.^[5] A gloss ⟨hlid⟩ for cooperculum of the first third of the 11th century is Middle Franconian for EWA, which takes its initial cluster to be copied from an older exemplar,^[5] while Seebold and Köbler count it as Old Saxon.^[3][8] Wiktionary gives Old Dutch only reconstructed forms;^[1] Middle Dutch has lit (“lid, door”).^[5]

Competing analyses

Seebold finds no comparison for the Germanic verb "to close" at the same ablaut grade, and holds that a link with the Indo-European root for "to lean, to incline" is in any case unjustified; he rather sees the root in a verb "to hide", comparing Latin supercilium.^[3] Boutkan and Siebinga, on the other hand, suggest that the meaning "cover" may have grown out of "to lean on", which would connect the noun with Old English hlinian, Old Saxon hlinon and Old High German hlinēn "to lean".^[2]

Meanings

1. lid, cover^[1]

Old English also used the word for "roof", "door, gate" and "opening",^[4] and Old Frisian for "eyelid".^[9] Old Norse hlið means "opening, door, gate".^[5]

Derivatives

• *hlidōn "to cover with a lid", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[1] EWA records the derived verb Old Frisian hlidia (“to cover”).^[5]
• *augahlid "eyelid", which Wiktionary reconstructs;^[1] Old Frisian has the compound āchhlid,^[9] and Old High German a compound with oug-.^[10]

Reflexes

• Old English: hlid (“lid, cover, roof, door, gate, opening”)^[4]
• Old Frisian: hlid (“eyelid, lid”)^[9]
• Old Saxon: hlid (“lid”)^[6]
• Old High German: lit (“lid, cover”)^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *hlid
2. ^ a b c d Boutkan, Dirk; Siebinga, Sjoerd Michiel (2005), Old Frisian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 1, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. hlid
3. ^ a b c Seebold, Elmar (1970), Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen starken Verben, The Hague / Paris: Mouton, p. s.v. hleid-a-
4. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. hlid
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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. lit
6. ^ a b Tiefenbach, Heinrich (2010), Altsächsisches Handwörterbuch / A Concise Old Saxon Dictionary, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter, p. s.v. hlid
7. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altfriesisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. hlid
8. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. hlid
9. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. hlid
10. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. lid