*stalljan

Reconstruction

Ringe and Taylor reconstruct *stalljan for Proto-West Germanic,^[1] and Wiktionary has the same form.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *stalljaną (“to put”),^[3][4] which Kroonen cites as *stalljan- and Köbler as *stalljan.^[3][4] Kroonen names the verb under the noun *stalla- "standing, stand, stall, stable".^[5] EWA takes the verb for a denominative, probably from Old High German stal and its cognates.^[6]

Morphology

A weak verb of class I.^[7][6]

Evidence

Ringe and Taylor give the verb as Old English stellan and Old High German stellen;^[1] it is also found as Old Frisian stella^[8] and Old Saxon stellian, which the Heliand has in the past participle gistellit.^[7] For Old Low Franconian, Köbler lists Old Dutch bistallio (“attack”), from the Malberg glosses ⟨besitalio⟩ of the Lex Salica and ⟨bistolio⟩ of the Pactus legis Salicae, dated perhaps 507–511, and refers it to *stalljan.^[9] Gamillscheg derives French étalon (“stallion”), recorded from the 13th century, from Frankish *stalljo (“the one who covers”), formed to a Frankish verb *stalljan (“to cover (a mare)”), and finds its feminine in the Malberg gloss ⟨stalagia⟩ "mare".^[10]

Competing analyses

Ringe and Taylor list *stalljan among the noteworthy words found only in West Germanic, which are more or less isolated in their etymology.^[11] Old Norse, however, has Old Norse stilla (“to arrange, to set up”), which de Vries sets beside Old Saxon stellian and Old High German stellen,^[12] and which Köbler derives from *stalljan.^[13]

EWA prefers a denominative verb.^[6] Riecke's alternative, a causative, would require the verb and the noun stal to share a verbal root, which EWA considers only one of several explanations of the noun.^[6] Wiktionary gives both a derivation from a root and, as an alternative, a formation from *stall and *-jan.^[2]

Meanings

1. to put, to place^[1][2]

Old English also used the verb for "to lay" and "to set an example",^[14] Old Saxon for "to found",^[7] and Old High German for "to erect", "to arrange" and "to settle".^[6]

Reflexes

• Old English: stellan (“to set, to place, to lay”)^[14]
• Old Frisian: stella (“to place”)^[8]
• Old Saxon: stellian (“to set down, to place, to found”)^[15][7]
• Old High German: stellen (“to set up, to erect, to place, to arrange, to settle”)^[6]

References

1. ^ a b c Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 127
2. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. *stalljan
3. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 473
4. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *stalljan
5. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 472–473
6. ^ a b c d e f 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. stellen
7. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. stellian
8. ^ a b Hofmann, Dietrich; Popkema, Anne Tjerk (2008), Altfriesisches Handwörterbuch, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, p. s.v. stella
9. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altniederfränkisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. bistallio
10. ^ Gamillscheg, Ernst (1966–1969), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der französischen Sprache, 2nd, fully revised ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 422
11. ^ Ringe, Don; Taylor, Ann (2014), The Development of Old English, A Linguistic History of English II, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 126–127
12. ^ de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 548
13. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altnordisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary database copy), p. s.v. stilla
14. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altenglisches Wörterbuch, 4th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. stellan
15. ^ Berr, Samuel (1971), An Etymological Glossary to the Old Saxon Heliand, Berne / Frankfurt: Herbert Lang, p. 379