bylgja

Forms

bylgja f (weak jōn-stem)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *bulgijō (“wave, billow”),^[1] a zero-grade noun made to the strong verb Proto-Germanic *belganą (“to swell”),^[2][3] which goes back to Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ- (“to swell”).^[1] Outside Norse the noun survives in Middle Low German bulge (“wave; skin bag”) and Middle High German bulge (“storm wave; leather bag”).^[2][4] Within Old Norse it belongs with belgr (“skin bag”), bólginn (“swollen”) and bólga (“swelling”).^[5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Menota's first record is bylgium in the manuscript Holm perg 6 fol of 1250–1300.^[7] ONP's first dated citations are from Konungs skuggsjá in a manuscript of 1275, where the sun in spring byðr stærkum bylgium oc brattum barum at hogværaz mæð minnkannda afle “bids the strong billows and steep waves grow calm with lessening force”.^[8]

Semantic evolution

ONP glosses it “wave, heavy sea, breaker” and perhaps “surf”, and finds it most often in religious works.^[8] In poetry Bylgja is one of the daughters of Ægir, the waves personified,^[9][10] and bylgju log “flame of the wave” is a kenning for gold.^[11][10]

The word continues as Icelandic, Faroese and Nynorsk bylgja, Swedish bölja and Danish bølge.^[5][12] English billow, recorded from the 1550s, is from the Old Norse word.^[13][4][14]

Timeline

• 1250–1300 – bylgium in Holm perg 6 fol.^[7]
• 1270–1280 – bylgium and bylgiur in AM 243 bα fol.^[15]
• 1275 – þyccar bylgiur oc briost myclar barur “thick billows and high-breasted waves” in Konungs skuggsjá.^[8]
• 1325 – bylgja in Snorra Edda.^[8]
• 1330–1370 – bylgjum in Hallfreðar saga in AM 132 fol.^[16]
• 1550s – English billow, from the Norse word.^[13]

Meanings

Noun

1. a wave, billow; heavy sea, breaker.^[8][17][18]

Word family

• hafbylgja
• sævarbylgja

Descendants

• Icelandic bylgja^[1]
• Faroese bylgja^[1]
• Norwegian Nynorsk bylgja^[1]
• Old Swedish bylghia^[1]
• Swedish bölja^[1]
• Danish bølge^[1]
• Norwegian Bokmål bølge^[1]
• English billow^[13]

Related words

• belgr
• bólginn
• bólga

Usage notes

As a name, Bylgja is one of the nine daughters of Ægir in the Prose Edda and the þulur.^[9][11][19]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 83
3. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 58
4. ^ a b de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 67
5. ^ a b Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon (1989), Íslensk orðsifjabók, Reykjavík: Orðabók Háskólans, ordsifjabok.arnastofnun.is, p. s.v. bylgja
6. ^ Cleasby, Richard; Vigfússon, Guðbrandur (1874), An Icelandic-English Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. 90
7. ^ a b Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. Holm perg 6 fol
8. ^ a b c d e Ordbog over det norrøne prosasprog / A Dictionary of Old Norse Prose, Copenhagen, onp.ku.dk (CC BY-SA 4.0), p. s.v. bylgja
9. ^ a b Faulkes, Anthony (2011), A New Introduction to Old Norse III: Glossary and Index of Names, 4th ed., London: Viking Society for Northern Research, p. s.v. bylgja
10. ^ a b Finnur Jónsson (1931), Lexicon Poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis, 2nd ed., Copenhagen: S. L. Møller, p. 72
11. ^ a b Sveinbjörn Egilsson (1860), Lexicon poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis, Hafniæ: Societas regia antiquariorum septentrionalium, p. 90
12. ^ Hellquist, Elof (1922), Svensk etymologisk ordbok, Lund, p. s.v. bölja
13. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
14. ^ Torp, Alf (1909), Wortschatz der germanischen Spracheinheit (Fick, Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der indogermanischen Sprachen, 4th ed., vol. 3), Göttingen, p. 268
15. ^ Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. AM 243 bα fol
16. ^ Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. AM 132 fol
17. ^ Zoëga, Geir T. (1910), A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. s.v. bylgja
18. ^ Baetke, Walter (1965–1968), Wörterbuch zur altnordischen Prosaliteratur, Berlin (digital ed. Greifswald 2006), p. 78
19. ^ Lind, E. H. (1905–1915), Norsk-isländska dopnamn ock fingerade namn från medeltiden, Uppsala & Leipzig, p. col. 30