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ArchivesHow wrong is this invented name?
Hi!
For the main character of my story I wanted to put the Germanic elements "is" (ice or iron) and the Old English element "giefu" (gift) together. I would assume you'd end up with Isgiefu, which judging off of Godgifu, would be latinized into Isiva.
How utterly incorrect am I? Am I a shame to the world of name etymology? How would one properly put those two elements together?
Thanks :)
For the main character of my story I wanted to put the Germanic elements "is" (ice or iron) and the Old English element "giefu" (gift) together. I would assume you'd end up with Isgiefu, which judging off of Godgifu, would be latinized into Isiva.
How utterly incorrect am I? Am I a shame to the world of name etymology? How would one properly put those two elements together?
Thanks :)
This message was edited 4/24/2016, 1:02 AM
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Replies
Continental Germanic names beginning with the "is" element include Isbrand, Isabert, Iseger, Isigildis, Isohard, Hisburg, Isuwarth and others. This element can also be commonly found in the extended form "Isan-". The continental Germanic equivalent of Old English "giefu" was "geba" or "giba". This is not rare as an initial element, but it is very rare as a second element. Förstermann mentions only Thiatgif (Theitkeba in Swabian), and feminine names Ottogeba and Wiligip as examples.
Looking at this from the Anglo-Saxon angle, the element "is" seems to be uncommon. PASE ( http://www.pase.ac.uk/jsp/index.jsp ) lists Isegod, Isulf, Iseweard, Iseard.
I think all this demonstrates is that there are a number of ways this hypothetical name could have been recorded. Maybe Isegifa if Anglo-Saxon and Isegeba if continental?
Looking at this from the Anglo-Saxon angle, the element "is" seems to be uncommon. PASE ( http://www.pase.ac.uk/jsp/index.jsp ) lists Isegod, Isulf, Iseweard, Iseard.
I think all this demonstrates is that there are a number of ways this hypothetical name could have been recorded. Maybe Isegifa if Anglo-Saxon and Isegeba if continental?
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The Onomasticon lists Iseldis, Iseweard/Isweard/Isuwarth/Isuuardus/Iseward, Isgaer, Isolf/Isulf, Ishard, Ishere, Ismaer and Isgod. Many may be abbreviations of Isen- rather than representing Is "ice" (dative Ise), but it's impossible to be certain, and Is as a rune name has the pedigree for onomastic use, and the correlates in Frost- (Frostulf) and Hrím- (rime-frost, in Hrimgrim and Hrimweald).
The reduction from ȝiefu/ȝefu (the oblique cases are all ȝiefe/ȝefe) to -iva has two causes, 1: the g/ȝ in OE is actually the voiced palatal fricative /ʝ/, near enough to the approximant /j/ (consonantal i) to be indistinguishable and sharing a common letter in OE. 2: the f represents both the sound of modern f and v; so the change in spelling from -giefu to -iva reflects pronunciation, not just Latinization.
The reduction from ȝiefu/ȝefu (the oblique cases are all ȝiefe/ȝefe) to -iva has two causes, 1: the g/ȝ in OE is actually the voiced palatal fricative /ʝ/, near enough to the approximant /j/ (consonantal i) to be indistinguishable and sharing a common letter in OE. 2: the f represents both the sound of modern f and v; so the change in spelling from -giefu to -iva reflects pronunciation, not just Latinization.
This message was edited 6/6/2016, 10:24 PM
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I think it's imaginable. But I think it depends on when the story is set, and how realistic the setting is. It would be much harder to suspend disbelief about a person named Isiva living in a realistic contemporary world, than it would be to do so for a character in a necessarily fictionalized medieval setting with the name's meaning being relevant to her characterization. If the story is set in medieval times or is fantastic in some way, you're already using a lot of imagination, and the invention wouldn't seem nearly as intrusive and phony as it would if you were to pretend it is a modern name with a contrived etymology. This is just my opinion, of course.
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It would be in a fantasy world and all the other characters also have Anglo-Saxon or other Germanic names. I agree, using it in a modern setting would be weird.
Thanks :)
Thanks :)
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Well, of course there is a "name element" page now for this, with even more names to compare to your invented one:
http://www.behindthename.com/element/giefu
http://www.behindthename.com/element/giefu
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