*oʀd

Reconstruction

Wiktionary reconstructs *oʀd for Proto-West Germanic.^[1] It continues inherited from Proto-Germanic *uzdaz (“point, tip”),^[1][2] which Kroonen cites by its stem *uzda-, Orel as *uzđaz and Köbler as *uzda-, *uzdaz.^[2][3][4] Boutkan and Siebinga set up Proto-Frisian *ord from Proto-Germanic *uzda-.^[5] Ringe and Taylor, who do not discuss this word, describe the Northwest Germanic lowering of stressed *u to *o when the next syllable contained a non-high vowel and no nasal or *j intervened.^[6] They also describe the development of *z before a coronal consonant, whose usual outcome is r, as in Proto-Germanic *huzdą "treasure", Proto-West Germanic *hozd, whence Old English hord, Old Saxon hord and Old High German hort; they add that this development was not uniform, either between dialects or between words.^[7]

Morphology

A masculine a-stem in Old English and Old Saxon.^[8][9] EWA takes the Old High German word for a neuter a-stem, perhaps also masculine,^[10] and the Old Frisian word is masculine for Hofmann and Popkema and neuter for Köbler.^[11][12]

Evidence

The word is attested in Old English ord, Old Frisian ord, Old Saxon ord and Old High German ort.^[2][3] The Old Saxon noun occurs in the Heliand,^[13][9] and the Old High German one is recorded from the last quarter of the 8th century.^[10]

Meanings

1. sharp point, point of a spear^[1]
2. spear^[1]
3. place^[1]

Berr takes "tip of a weapon" for the original meaning.^[13] Old English also used the word for "source, beginning", "front" and "leader",^[14] Old Frisian for "edge of a wound", "place" and a coin,^[11] and Old High German for "corner", "end", "edge" and "hem".^[15]

Reflexes

• Old English: ord (“point, spear, source, beginning, front, leader”)^[14]
• Old Frisian: ord (“point of a spear, edge of a wound, place, a coin”)^[11]
• Old Saxon: ord (“tip of a weapon”)^[13]
• Old High German: ort (“point of a weapon, corner, end, edge”)^[10]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *oʀd
2. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 563
3. ^ a b Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 436
4. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *uzda-
5. ^ Boutkan, Dirk; Siebinga, Sjoerd Michiel (2005), Old Frisian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 1, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. s.v. ord
6. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 27
7. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 84
8. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. ord
9. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. ord
10. ^ a b c 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. ort
11. ^ a b c Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. ord
12. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altfriesisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. ord
13. ^ a b c Berr, Samuel (1971), An Etymological Glossary to the Old Saxon Heliand, Berne / Frankfurt: Herbert Lang, p. 315
14. ^ a b Holthausen, Ferdinand (1934), Altenglisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. ord
15. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. ort