geysa

Forms

geysa v (past tense geysta, past participle geystr), weak verb^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *gausijaną (“to make erupt”),^[2][3] the causative of the strong verb continued in gjósa (“to gush, burst out”).^[4][5][6] Torp groups with them gustr (“gust of wind”), Middle Dutch guysen (“to gush out”) and Old High German gusu (“torrents”).^[4] The Indo-European root is given as Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeu- (“to pour”) in the Pokorny-based lexicons.^[7]

Cleasby and Vigfússon keep it apart from geisa (“to rage”),^[6] while Egilsson does not separate them in the poetry.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Menota's first record is AM 519 a 4to, dated 1270–1290, with the reflexive geysizk and geysask.^[9] ONP's earliest dated citations, of 1275, show both the literal and the figurative use: þar geysaz vꜹtn at þeim með forsfalli “there the waters rush at them in a torrent”, and voro bøndr geystir a hendr honom “the farmers were stirred up against him”.^[10]

Semantic evolution

The active verb means to set something in violent motion, as in láta geysa eld ok járn “to let fire and iron rage”, of harrying.^[10][1] Most citations are of the reflexive geysask, “to rush forward”, used of crowds, the sea and floods, and of the past participle geystr “rushing, furious”, with the neuter geyst as an adverb, “violently, at full speed”.^[10][6] ONP finds it most in romances, historical works and religious works.^[10]

The verb continues as Icelandic geysa, Faroese goysa (“to spurt”) and Norwegian Nynorsk gøysa (“to well up”).^[5][11] From it come the intensive prefix geysi- “exceedingly” and the name of the hot spring Geysir.^[5][11][12]

Timeline

• 1270–1290 – geysizk, geysask in AM 519 a 4to.^[9]
• 1275 – geysaz vꜹtn “waters rush”, and geystir “stirred up”, of angry farmers, by ONP's dating.^[10]
• 1275 – Þorkell geysa, a man's byname, by ONP's dating.^[10]
• 1280 – geystr “aggressive, rushing on”, by ONP's dating.^[10]

Meanings

Verb

1. to set in violent motion, drive on (harry with láta geysa eld ok járn).^[10][1][13]
2. to incite or stir someone up.^[10][5][12]
3. (reflexive, geysask) to rush or storm forward; of the sea and floods, to surge.^[10][1][14]
4. (past participle geystr) rushing at great speed; furious, aggressive;^[10][6][15] geyst as an adverb, violently, at full speed.^[10][6][15]

Word family

• geysi-
• geysingr
• ofgeystr

Descendants

• Icelandic geysa^[5]
• Faroese goysa^[5]
• Norwegian Nynorsk gøysa^[11]

Related words

• gjósa
• gustr

Usage notes

The þulur have a feminine Geysa as a troll-woman's name.^[16][8] The word geysa is the byname of Þorkell geysa in Morkinskinna and later texts.^[10][17] De Vries reads the name as “the one who rushes on”.^[5]

References

1. ^ a b c d Zoëga, Geir T. (1910), A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. s.v. geysa
2. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
3. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altnordisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary database copy), p. s.v. geysa
4. ^ a b Torp, Alf (1909), Wortschatz der germanischen Spracheinheit (Fick, Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der indogermanischen Sprachen, 4th ed., vol. 3), Göttingen, p. 137
5. ^ a b c d e f g de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 166
6. ^ a b c d e Cleasby, Richard; Vigfússon, Guðbrandur (1874), An Icelandic-English Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. 199
7. ^ Slocum, Jonathan, ed., Indo-European Lexicon (after Pokorny), Linguistics Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, p. s.v. geysa
8. ^ a b Sveinbjörn Egilsson (1860), Lexicon poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis, Hafniæ: Societas regia antiquariorum septentrionalium, p. 238
9. ^ a b Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. AM 519 a 4to
10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Ordbog over det norrøne prosasprog / A Dictionary of Old Norse Prose, Copenhagen, onp.ku.dk (CC BY-SA 4.0), p. s.v. geysa
11. ^ a b c Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon (1989), Íslensk orðsifjabók, Reykjavík: Orðabók Háskólans, ordsifjabok.arnastofnun.is, p. s.v. geysa
12. ^ a b Möbius, Theodor (1866), Altnordisches Glossar, Leipzig: Teubner, p. 139
13. ^ Fritzner, Johan (1886–1896), Ordbog over det gamle norske Sprog, 2nd ed., Kristiania, p. s.v. geysa
14. ^ Baetke, Walter (1965–1968), Wörterbuch zur altnordischen Prosaliteratur, Berlin (digital ed. Greifswald 2006), p. 195
15. ^ a b Finnur Jónsson (1931), Lexicon Poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis, 2nd ed., Copenhagen: S. L. Møller, p. 181
16. ^ 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. geysa
17. ^ Lind, E. H. (1905–1915), Norsk-isländska dopnamn ock fingerade namn från medeltiden, Uppsala & Leipzig, p. col. 318