Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Listen Lífsteinn, Ymir's bones bear not only one way of naming -- even Óðinn has not one.

I'm in the process of composing an entry on SCA Kingdom names translated into Old Norse, and I thought it might be handy to have a list of the period place names I may be referencing later, including new place names I've found.  The places are in alphabetical order, and I've included the references to the country's populace and languages of those places when I've found them.  Sometimes the populace- and language-vocabulary are repeated under multiple names for the same place, but are not necessarily derived from the same root etymology.

Austr(h)álfa [u] f. (Baltic, East Europe)
  • austrhálfulýðr "people of the East"
Austrlönd n. pl. (the East, =Eastern Europe)
  • austanmaðr m. "eastern man"
  • austkylfir m.pl. "easterlings"
  • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes.
Austrríki n. (Eastern Europe, esp. Russia, Austria)
  • austanmaðr m. "eastern man"
  • austkylfir m.pl. "easterlings"
  • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes.
Austrvegr m. (esp. Russia, Wenden, the east Baltic)
  • austanmaðr m. "eastern man"
  • austkylfir m.pl. "easterlings"
Bretland n. (Wales)
  • inn breski (byname) "the Welshman"
  • Valir m. pl. "the Welsh"
  • Brezkr adj. "Welsh"
Danmörk f. (Denmark)
  • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes.
  • Danir m. pl. "Danes"
  • danskr adj. "Danish"
  • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue" -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue 
Danaveldi n. (the empire of the Danes)
  • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes. 
  • Danir m. pl. "Danes"
  • danskr adj. "Danish"
  • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue" -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
England n. (England)
  • Englar "the English people"
  • Enskr adj. "English"
  • Enzka "English-tongue"
    Frakkland n. (the land of the Franks)
    • Frakkar m.pl. 'the Franks'
    (mod.?) Franz f. (France)
    • Frankismenn "the French" 
    • Frankismál "the Frankish tongue" 
    • (mod.?) Franziska "the French tongue"
    Frísland n. (Frisia) 
    • Frísir m. pl. "the Frisians" 
    • Frískr adj. "Frisian"
    Færeyjar f. pl. (the Faroe Islands, lit. "Sheep Islands") 
    • Færeyingar m. pl. "people of the Faroe Islands" 
    • Færeyskr adj. "Faroese"
    Garðar m./Garðarríki n./Garðaveldi n. (Scand-Rus Kingdom) 
    • Garðarríksmenn m. pl. "the Rus, Russians"
    (mod.?) Grikkland n.
    • Garðskonungr "the Greek Emperor"
    Hjaltland n. (Shetlands)
    • Hjaltlendingr m. "a Shetlander" 
    • Hjaltlenzkr/Haltneskr adj. "Shetlandish"
    Írland n. (Ireland)
    • Írar m. pl. "Irishmen" 
    • Írskr adj. "Irish" 
    • Írska "Irish tongue"
    Ísland n. (Iceland)
    • Íslendingar m. "Icelanders"
    • Norræna "Norse tongue" -- first used in 13th and 14th century Iceland instead of Dönsk tunga for the Norwegian and Icelandic language
    • Íslenzkt mál "Icelandic tongue" -- first used in the 15th century, and the phrase used in Bible translations
    Langbarðaland n. (Lombardy)
    • Langbarðar m.pl. "the Lombards"  
    Miðjarðarhaf n. (The Mediterranean Sea)
              --> Miðjörð f. 'The Mediterranean' [I'm backforming here]

    Mikligarðr m. (Byzantium/Constantinople)

    Mön f. [gen. Manar] (Isle of Man)
    • Manarmenn m. pl. "Manxmen"
    Norðmanndi n. 'Normandy'
    • Norðmanndingar m. "people of Normandy"
    Norðr(h)álfa f. (Northern Europe)

    Norðrlönd n. pl. (Scandinavia)
    • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes. 
    • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
    • Norræna "Norse tongue" -- first used in 13th and 14th century Iceland instead of Dönsk tunga for the Norwegian and Icelandic language
    Noregr n. (Norway)
    • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes.
    • Noregsmenn m. pl. "men of Norway"
    • Norðmaðr m. "North-man, Norwegian" 
    • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue" -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
    • Norræna "Norse tongue" -- first used in 13th and 14th century Iceland instead of Dönsk tunga for the Norwegian and Icelandic language
    Norðymbraland n. (Northumbria)
    • Norðymbrar m. pl. "Northumbrians"
    Orkneyjar f. pl. (the Orkeys)
    • Orkneyingar m. pl. "the people of the Orkneys" 
    • Orkneyskr adj.
    Róm n./Róma f./Rómaborg f./Rúmaborg f. (Rome -- the city)

    Rómaborgar ríki n. "the Roman Empire"
    • Rómaborgar lýðr m. (pl. lýðir) "the Roman people"
    Saxland n. (Germany)
    • Saxar m. pl. "Saxons, Germans"
    • Saxlenskr adj. "Saxon"
    • Saxneskr adj. "Saxon"
    Serkland (Arabia)
    • Serkir m. pl. "Saracens" (Northern Africa, Southern Spain)
    Skotland (Scotland, sometimes Ireland)
    • Skotar m. pl. "the Scots" 
    • Skotzkr adj. "Scottish"
    Suðreyjar (Sodor, the Hebridges)
    • Suðreyingar m. 'people of the Hebridges'
    • Suðreyskr adj.
    • under suðr "south" it is noted that an older form of the word is sunnr (ex. sunnr gunnar, sunnr runna) and is used in poems. Sunnr is also listed as an adv. meaning 'south' and is seen in several place names
    Suðr(h)álfa f. [u] ("the southern region")
    • under suðr "south" it is noted that an older form of the word is sunnr (ex. sunnr gunnar, sunnr runna) and is used in poems. Sunnr is also listed as an adv. meaning 'south' and is seen in several place names
    Suðrlönd (Saxony, South Germany)
    • suðrmaðr m. "a Southerner", esp. of Saxon, German 
    • under suðr "south" it is noted that an older form of the word is sunnr (ex. sunnr gunnar, sunnr runna) and is used in poems. Sunnr is also listed as an adv. meaning 'south' and is seen in several place names
    Suðrríki n. (esp. Central and Southern Europe)
    • under suðr "south" it is noted that an older form of the word is sunnr (ex. sunnr gunnar, sunnr runna) and is used by older poets. Sunnr is also listed as an adv. meaning 'south' and is seen in several place names
    Svíaríki (Sweden)
    • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes. 
    • Svíar n. pl. "the Swedes", originally limited to the Northern Swedes.
    • Dönsk tunga 'the Danish tongue' -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
    Svíaveldi (Swedish-kingdom)
    • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes. 
    • Svíar n. pl. "the Swedes", originally limited to the Northern Swedes.
    • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue" -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
    Svíþjóð (Sweden)
    • austmaðr m. "eastman" -- a term used in Iceland and Northern England to refer to those who came from the Scandinavian continent, especially merchants. The Anglo-Saxon equivalent is easterling. In Norway, this term referred to Swedes. 
    • Svíar n. pl. "the Swedes", originally limited to the Northern Swedes
    • Dönsk tunga "the Danish tongue" -- the earliest recorded name of the common Scandinavian tongue
    Vestrlönd (British Isles, Normandy, Bretagne, etc.)
    • vestanmaðr m. 'western-man'
    • Vestmaðr m. 'man from British Isles, esp. Irish'

    Listen Lífsteinn, Ymir's bones bear not only one way of naming -- even Óðinn has not one.
    • 'Ymir's bones' are mountains -- in the case representing the land (as I have excluded names for seaways, oceans etc. from this list)

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