staðr

staðr¹ place

Pronunciation

• 12th century Icelandic: /ˈstɑðr̩/^[1]

Forms

staðr m (genitive staðar, plural staðir) (strong i-stem)^[1]

Etymology

The word for a place is inherited from Proto-Germanic *stadiz (“place”),^[1][2][3] shared with Gothic 𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌸𐍃 (staþs), Old English stede, Old Frisian sted, Old Saxon stad and Old High German stat.^[2] Kroonen traces it to Proto-Indo-European *sth₂-tí-, an abstract noun of the root Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand”),^[2][1] and Orel and de Vries compare Ancient Greek στάσις (stásis, “standing, station”) and Latin statim (“on the spot”).^[3][4] Within Old Norse its verb is standa.^[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The oldest dated record is the Danish runestone from Bjerring church, dated typologically to 950–1000, which has ór stað “from (its) place” in a damaged passage.^[6] The clearer Ydby stone of the post-Jelling period reads Þorgísl setti ok synir Leifa í stað þenna stein eptir Leifa “Þorgísl and Leifi's sons set this stone in this place in memory of Leifi”.^[7] In Vǫluspá the stars þat né vissu hvar þær staði áttu “did not know where their places were”.^[8][1]

Semantic evolution

Fritzner puts “standing still, stopping” first, as in staðr varð á bœndum “the farmers came to a halt”.^[9] The phrases nema staðar and gefa staðar “to stop” belong here, as do the senses “firmness, power to hold out” and “springiness” of a weapon.^[10][11][12] The common sense is “place”, also a dwelling and in Christian use a church estate, see or monastery.^[13][14] De Vries ascribes the sense “town” to German influence,^[4] as Falk and Torp do for Danish stad.^[15]

The word continues as Icelandic staður, Swedish stad and Danish sted.^[4][16] Hellquist finds some Swedish uses native and others, such as “town”, borrowed from Middle Low German and German.^[16] De Vries cites a Middle English stad “position, state” from Norse.^[4]

Timeline

• 950–1000 – ór stað on the Bjerring runestone, by typological dating.^[6]
• 1150–1250 – staði, stǫðum, stað in NRA norr fragm 81 B.^[17]
• c. 1200 or a little later – saþ (stað) on the Faroese runic inscription FR 2.^[18]
• 1200–1225 – staðr, staðar, staðinn in AM 677 4to.^[19]
• 1220–1230 – stauðum in the charter DN 2:5.^[20]

Meanings

Noun

1. a place, spot, position.^[13][8]
2. an abode, dwelling.^[8][1]
3. a town, city.^[1][4]
4. (Christian) a church estate, see or convent.^[14][1]
5. a stop, pause, hesitation (nema staðar “to stop”).^[9][10]
6. firmness, power to hold out (eiga stað við e-u).^[10][11]
7. springiness, elasticity (of a bow or a sword).^[11][12]
8. a mark, trace; outcome.^[11][1]
9. a part; a respect (í marga staði “in many respects”).^[13][8]

Word family

• staðfastr
• staðfesta
• staðfesting
• staðligr
• staðlauss
• staðarprestr
• staðarfólk
• staðarforráð
• þingstaðr
• bólstaðr

Descendants

• Icelandic staður^[1]
• Faroese staður^[1]
• Norwegian Nynorsk stad^[1]
• Swedish stad^[1]
• Danish sted^[1]
• Danish stad^[1]

staðr² restive

Forms

staðr adjective^[8][5]

Etymology

The adjective meaning “restive” is inherited from Proto-Germanic *stadaz (“standing”),^[1][21] from the root of standa.^[1] Orel equates it with Ancient Greek στατός (statós, “standing”) and Latin status (“standing”), which de Vries compares too.^[21][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Fritzner cites it from Frostaþingslǫg, in a list of a horse's hidden faults ending stjarft eða statt “shy or restive”;^[9] Kormáks saga has Kormakr varð staðr at “Kormákr was taken aback and fell silent”.^[9][8]

Semantic evolution

Used of a horse that stops and will not be driven on, the adjective also described people who stop short, hesitate or say nothing.^[9][11] Baetke has it in the impersonal e-m verðr statt at “someone hesitates to do something”.^[10] De Vries finds it in Norwegian and Swedish dialect sta “stubborn”, of horses.^[4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. (of a horse) restive, refusing to go on.^[8][9]
2. stopping short, hesitant.^[8][10]
3. silent.^[9][11]

Word family

• staðþrotinn

Descendants

• Icelandic staður^[1]