sléttr

Forms

sléttr adj (neuter slétt)^[1] Old Norwegian slætt in Holm perg 17 4to.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Germanic *slihtaz (“smooth, level”).^[3][4][5] The adjective is shared by Gothic 𐍃𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍄𐍃 (slaihts), Old Frisian sliucht, Old Saxon slicht and Old High German sleht, while Old English has it only in eorðslihtes (“level with the ground”).^[6][7][8][9]

Before /ht/ the vowel was lengthened, and /ht/ was later assimilated to /tt/;^[10] Noreen puts the lengthening between 700 and 900.^[10] Cleasby and Vigfússon already noted that Scandinavian lost the /h/ that the other languages keep.^[11]

Wiktionary derives the adjective from Proto-Germanic *slīkaną (“to slide, slip”),^[3] and Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon takes it as related to slikja and slíkur;^[9] Köbler refers it to Proto-Indo-European *slek- (“to be slack”).^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Menota first records the word as the neuter slét in AM 619 4to, of 1200–1225.^[12] The first sense in the dictionaries is “level, flat”, of ground, as in sléttr vǫllr “a level field”.^[1][13]

Semantic evolution

From level ground and a calm sea the word passed to smooth surfaces, such as a stone smooth enough to whet iron on, and then to things that go without a hitch: segja sínar farar eigi sléttar “to tell that one's journey had not gone smoothly”, that is, to report a failure.^[1][11][13] The neuter slétt served as an adverb, “straight, directly” and “smoothly”, as in tala slétt “to speak smoothly”.^[14][1] Hægstad and Torp add the sense “whole, complete”.^[15]

Jóhannesson ascribes the later senses “simple” and “insignificant” to Middle Low German slecht, and Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon likewise takes “plain, simple” in Icelandic sléttur as a loan meaning.^[16][9] The adjective survives in Swedish slät and Danish slet.^[17] English slight is traced to a Norse source by Hellquist and Etymonline, but to Middle Dutch by Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon.^[17][18][9]

Timeline

• 1200–1225 – slét in AM 619 4to, the first record.^[12]
• 1225–1250 – the comparative slettare in DG 8 II.^[19]
• 1270–1290 – sléttum, sléttra and other forms in AM 519 a 4to.^[20]
• 1290–1310 – the Norwegian spelling slætt in Holm perg 17 4to.^[2]
• Early 14th century – English slight “smooth, sleek”, probably from a Scandinavian source.^[18]

Meanings

Adjective

1. level, flat, even, of ground or the sea.^[1][14]
2. smooth, of a surface.^[1][13]
3. going smoothly, without hindrance;^[1][13] segja sínar farar eigi sléttar “to report a failure”.^[1][13]
4. (neuter slétt as adverb) straight, quite; smoothly, well.^[1][11]
5. whole, complete.^[15]

Word family

• slétta
• ósléttr

Descendants

• Icelandic sléttur^[3]
• Faroese slættur^[3]
• Norwegian Nynorsk slett^[3]
• Norwegian Bokmål slett^[3]
• Swedish slät^[3]
• Danish slet^[3]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Zoëga, Geir T. (1910), A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. s.v. sléttr
2. ^ a b Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. Holm perg 17 4to
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
4. ^ Köbler, Gerhard, Altnordisches Wörterbuch, online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary database copy), p. s.v. slēttr
5. ^ de Vries, Jan (1977), Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 2nd ed., Leiden: Brill, p. 515
6. ^ Heidermanns, Frank (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen Primäradjektive, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter
7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Germanisches Wörterbuch, 5th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling, p. s.v. *slihta-
8. ^ Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de
9. ^ a b c d Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon (1989), Íslensk orðsifjabók, Reykjavík: Orðabók Háskólans, ordsifjabok.arnastofnun.is, p. s.v. sléttur
10. ^ a b Noreen, Adolf (1923), Altisländische und altnorwegische Grammatik, 4th ed., Halle, p. § 124
11. ^ a b c Cleasby, Richard; Vigfússon, Guðbrandur (1874), An Icelandic-English Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. 567
12. ^ a b Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. AM 619 4to
13. ^ a b c d e Fritzner, Johan (1886–1896), Ordbog over det gamle norske Sprog, 2nd ed., Kristiania, p. s.v. sléttr
14. ^ a b Baetke, Walter (1965–1968), Wörterbuch zur altnordischen Prosaliteratur, Berlin (digital ed. Greifswald 2006), p. 575
15. ^ a b Hægstad, Marius; Torp, Alf (1909), Gamalnorsk ordbok med nynorsk tyding, Kristiania: Det norske samlaget, p. 408
16. ^ Jóhannesson, Alexander (1956), Isländisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, Bern, p. 1173
17. ^ a b Hellquist, Elof (1922), Svensk etymologisk ordbok, Lund, p. s.v. slät
18. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com, p. s.v. slight
19. ^ Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. DG 8 II
20. ^ Menota: Medieval Nordic Text Archive, menota.org (texts by shelfmark; CC BY-SA 4.0), p. AM 519 a 4to