The River-Names of Europe Part 18

3. _With the ending es._ _Germany._ FILISA, 8th cent. The FILS and the VILS.

In the third division of this chapter I put the names in which the sense of spreading seems to be found. This sense may have three different acceptations--first, that, generally, of a wide river--secondly, that of a river relatively broad and shallow--thirdly, that of a river forming an estuary at its mouth.

I bring in here the Padus or Po, which, by Metrodorus Scepsius, a Greek author quoted by Pliny, has been derived from the pine-trees, "called in the Gallic tongue _padi_," of which there were a number about its source. A derivation like this jars with common sense, for it is unreasonable to suppose that the Gauls, coming upon this fine river, gave it no name until they had tracked it up to its source, and there made the not very notable discovery that it was surrounded by pine-trees. Much more probable is it that they came first upon its mouth, and much more striking would be the appearance that would be presented to them. For, as Niebuhr observes, "the basin of the Po, and of the rivers emptying themselves into it was originally a vast bay of the sea," which by gradual embanking was confined within its present channels. As then the mouth of the Padus was a vast estuary, so in the Gael. _badh_, a bay or estuary, I find the explanation of the name. The root, I apprehend, is Sansc. _pat_, Lat. _pateo_, _pando_, &c., to spread, and hence, I take it, the name Bander, of several small bays on the S.W. coast of Asia, of Bantry Bay in Ireland, and of Boderia, the name given by Ptolemy to the Firth of Forth.

1. _Italy._ PADUS ant. The Po.

_Germany._ BADA, 9th cent., now the BODE.

2. _With the ending en._ _Ireland._ The BANDON. Co. Cork. (Forms a considerable estuary).

_Italy._ PANTa.n.u.s ant., now the Lake of Lesina, a salt lagoon on the Adriatic.

3. _With the ending er._ _Germany._ PATRA, 9th cent., now the PADER.

4. _With the ending es._ _Hungary._ PATHISSUS ant., now the TEMES.[55]

In the Sansc. _parth_, to spread or extend, we may perhaps find the origin of the following. Can the name of the Parthians be hence derived, in reference to their well-known mode of fighting?

1. _Germany._ The PARDE. Joins the Elster.

The BORD, in Moravia--here?

2. _With the ending en._ _Asia Minor._ PARTHENIUS ant.--here?[56]

In the sense of "that which spreads" I am inclined to bring in the root _ta_, _tav_, _tan_, _tam_. While in the Gaelic we find _tain_, and the Obs. _ta_, water, _taif_, sea--in the Welsh we have the verbs _taenu_ and _tafu_, to expand or spread. The latter, I think, must contain the root-meaning; and the appellatives must rather signify water of a spreading character. In this sense we find the words _to_, _tu_, _tau_, in the Hungarian dialects signifying a lake. The Sansc. has _tan_, to extend, but we must presume a simpler form _ta_, corresponding with the above Obs. Gael. word for water. Mone explains _tab_, as in Tabuda (the Scheldt), as "a broad river, especially one with a broad mouth." This sense no doubt obtains in many of the names of this group, for, as well as the Scheldt; the Tay, Taw, Teign, and Tamar, all have this character in a more or less notable degree. In other cases the sense may be that of comparative broadness--thus the Timavus, though little more than a mile long, is 50 yards broad close to its source. So the characteristic of the Dane, as noticed by the county topographers, is that it is "broad and shallow." And the feature which strikes the topographer is of course that which would naturally give the name. There are, however, some other roots which might intermix, as Sansc. _tan_, resonare, Lat. _tono_, Germ. _tonen_, &c. Also Gael. and Ir. _taam_, to pour; Gael. and Ir.

_tom_, to bathe, Welsh and Ir. _ton_, unda.

_The form Ta, Tab, Tav._

1. _England._ The TAVY and the TAW. Devon.

DEVA ant., the DEE--here?

_Scotland._ TAVUS ant. The TAY.

The DEE, two rivers--here?

_Wales._ The TAW, the TIVY, and the TAVE.

_Ireland._ The TAY. Waterford.

Loch TA in Wexford.

_France._ The DIVE, Dep. Vienne--here?

_Germany._ The THAYA in Moravia.

_Spain._ The DEVA by Placentia--here?

2. _With the ending d or t._ _Scotland._ The TEVIOT in Roxburghs.h.i.+re--here?

_Holland._ TABUDA ant., now the Scheldt.

_Siberia._ The TAVDA.

_India._ The TAPTEE--here?

_The form Tan, Tam._

1. _England._ The TEIGN and the TEANE.

The DANE and the DEANE.

The TAME, three rivers.

_Scotland._ The TEMA. Selkirks.h.i.+re.

Da.n.u.s ant., now the DON.

_France._ Da.n.u.s ant., now the Ain.

The DAHME and the DeAUME.

_Norway._ The TANA.

_Italy._ TIMAVUS ant., now the TIMAO.

_Russia._ TANAIS ant., now the DON.

The TIM and the TOM.

_Greece._ Ta.n.u.s ant., now the Luku.

2. _With the ending er._ _England._ The TAMAR. Cornwall.

_Belgium._ The DEMER.

_Italy._ TANARUS ant., now the TANARO.

_Spain._ TAMARIS ant., now the TAMBRE.

_Syria._ TAMYRAS ant., (Strabo)--here?

3. _With the ending d._ _England._ TAMEDE (_Cod. Dip._), now the TEME.

_Mauretania._ TAMUDA ant. (_Pliny._)

4. _With the ending es._ _England._ The THAMES. Tamesis (_Caesar_), Tamesa (_Tacitus_), Tamese, Temis (_Cod. Dip._), Welsh Tain.

_Hungary._ The TEMES ant. Pathisus, (_see note p. 132_).

From the root _tan_, to extend, we may probably also derive the word _tang_ found in Hung. _tenger_, sea, Ostiakic (an Ugric dialect of the Finnic cla.s.s) _tangat_, river, and in the Dan. _tang_, sea-weed, which probably contains a trace of an older sense.

1. _Holland._ The DONGE in Brabant.

_Norway._ The TENGS.

2. _With the ending er._ _Germany._ TONGERA, 10th cent., now the TANGER.

_Italy._ TANAGER ant., now the TANAGRO--here?

FOOTNOTES:

[37] This, one of the Homeric rivers, was not identified in the time of Pliny.

[38] Perhaps formed from _et_ by a phonetic _n_. So the Eamont in c.u.mberland seems to have been called in the time of Leland the Eamot.

[39] It will be seen, however, that while admitting this root, I do not place Garonne to it.

[40] Smith's Ancient Geography.

[41] This river of Apulia, though small in summer, is exceedingly violent in winter.

[42] "In its upper part it is a raging torrent." _Johnston's Gazetteer._

[43] The derivation of Mone, who makes _scuz_ and _scut_ altered forms of _srot_ or _srut_, is not to be entertained.

[44] I am not sure that the Jahde of Oldenburg does not contain the more definite idea of a horse (Eng. _jade_, North. Eng. _yawd_). There are three rivers near together, the Haase, the Hunte, and the Jahde. It rather seems as if the popular fancy had got up the idea of a hunt, and named them as the Hare, the Hound, and the Horse.