Insel German · revision 35833

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=9th century, Old High German glosses|origins=la īnsula}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈɪnzəl/, [ˈʔɪn.zl̩], [ˈʔɪn.zəl]^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''Insel''' ''f'' (genitive Insel, plural Inseln, diminutive Inselchen n)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|gmh|insel]], [[bor|la|īnsula|t=island]].^(Kluge 2011|446)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|394) The earlier form, [[goh|īsila]] (9th century) and early [[m|gmh|īsele]], rests on the Romance form without the nasal, which also gave [[it|isola]] and [[fro|isle]].^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2020|394)^(Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch) The Grimms took the Old High German form as a sign that the word came from the south by contact with Romance speakers through the Alemannic area, not from books.^(DWB|10, 2139) The form with ⟨n⟩, recorded from the 13th century, is a new borrowing straight from Latin, and Latin influence also produced [[m|gmh|insul]], in use from the end of the 13th century until the 18th.^(Kluge 2011|446)^(Pfeifer 1993) The older loan survives in the place name Isel.^(Kluge 2011|446)

+

+ The origin of the Latin word is disputed.^(Kluge 2011|446) Köbler mentions a derivation from the phrase [[grc|ἐν ἁλί|tr=en halí|t=in the sea]], “the one lying in the salt sea”, and the Duden dictionary gives this as its literal meaning.^(Köbler AHD)^(Duden GWDS 1999) The same Latin word is [[en|isle]] and [[fr|île]].^(Kluge 2011|446)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old High German ''īsila'' is found in glosses and in Notker (about 1000), who explains that land separated from the mainland in the sea or in lakes is called ''insula'', ''īsila''.^(Köbler AHD)^(DWB|10, 2139)^(Schützeichel 2012|167) Middle High German ''insel'' appears from the Rolandslied (about 1170) on.^(Köbler MHD)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Insel won out over the older native words for an island, ''ouwe'' (modern [[Aue]]) and ''wert'' (modern [[Werder]]), and over [[Eiland]], borrowed from Old Frisian.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Wiktionary) Adelung records an obsolete sense “anything lying by itself”, still seen in the name of the Inselberg near Eisenach, which stands alone in a plain.^(Adelung 1793) Figurative uses for a place cut off from its surroundings are common, and in 1933 Richard Pekrun recorded ''Verkehrsinsel'' “traffic island”.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Paul 2002) From the 16th century an islander has been an [[Insulaner]], from Latin ''insulanus''.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 9th century – Old High German ''īsila'' appears in glosses.^(Kluge 2011|446)^(Köbler AHD)

+ * c. 1000 – Notker explains the word in his Psalter.^(DWB|10, 2139)

+ * 13th century – The form ''insel'' appears, borrowed again from Latin.^(Kluge 2011|446)

+ * Late 13th century – The Latinising form ''insul'' appears; it lasts until the 18th century.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 16th century – ''Insulaner'' “islander” is borrowed from Latin.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 1933 – ''Verkehrsinsel'' “traffic island” is recorded.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # An [[m|en|island]], a piece of land surrounded by the water of a sea, lake or river: ''Wir setzten mit der Fähre auf die Insel über.''^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(figurative)'' A place or area that is cut off from or quite different from its surroundings: ''eine Insel der Ruhe mitten in der Stadt''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[Halbinsel]]

+ * [[Inselchen]]

+ * [[Insulaner]]

+ * [[Verkehrsinsel]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[isolieren]]

+ * [[Eiland]]

+ * [[Werder]]

+ * [[Aue]]

+ * [[en|isle]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Reif für die Insel sein'' (“ready for the island”) is colloquial for badly needing a holiday or being tired of civilisation.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}