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Old Frankish
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Everything about Old Frankish totally explainedOld Frankish was the language of the Franks and it's classified as a West Germanic language. Once it was spoken in areas covering modern Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and adjacent parts of France and Germany.
The Franks are descended from Germanic tribes from the Nordic countries that settled parts of the Netherlands and western Germany during the early Iron Age. From the 4th century they're attested as moving into the Roman Empire into what is now the southern Netherlands and northern Belgium. In the 5th and 6th century they expanded their realm and dominated Roman Gaul completely as well as client states such as Bavaria and Thuringen. The main difference between Frankish and neighbouring Germanic languages is that it's thought to be more 'celticised', probably by Belgic peoples, like for example the Menapii, whose language persisted in the realm of the Franks.
The language of the Franks managed to survive as Old Low Franconian in the north but it was superseded by French in the south. It had some impact on Old French. Old Frankish isn't directly attested and is reconstructed from loanwords in Old French, and from Old Dutch.
Old Frankish has introduced the modern French word for the nation, France, to mean "land of the Franks", but except from loanwords, French isn't closely related to Frankish. By the year 900 Frankish had evolved into Old Low Franconian (including Old Dutch) in the area that was originally held by Franks of the 4th century, while in Valois and Île-de-France (Paris) it was replaced by Old French as the dominating language.
Old Frankish has also left many etymons in the Walloon language, even more than in French, and not always the same ones.
The impact of Old Frankish on modern French
Most French words of Germanic origin came from Frankish (most of the others are English loanwords, see Franglais), often replacing the Latin word which would have been used. This can be shown with the examples in the table below.
| French |
Old Low Franconian |
Dutch or Other Germanic Cognates |
Latin/Romance |
| alène "awl" (Sp alesna, It lesina) |
*alisna |
MDu elsene, else, Du els |
L sūbula |
| alise "whitebeam berry" (OFr alis, alie "whitebeam") |
*alísō "alder" |
MDu else, Du els, elzeboom "alder", OHG elira, erila, G Erle "alder" |
non-native to the Mediterranean |
| baron |
*baro "freeman" |
Du bar "serious", OHG baro "freeman", OE beorn "noble", ON berja, berjask "to strike, kill", baratta "combat", bardagi "blow" |
Germanic cultural import |
| bâtard "bastard" (FrProv bâsco) |
*bāst "marriage" |
OFris bost "marriage", WFris boaste, boask "marriage" |
L nothus |
| bâtir "to build" (OFr bastir "to baste, tie together") |
*bastian "to bind with bast string" |
OHG bestan "to mend, patch" |
L construere (It costruire) |
| bleu "blue" (OFr blou, bleve) |
*blao |
MDu blā, blau, blaeuw, Du blauw |
L caeruleus "light blue", lividus "dark blue" |
| bois "wood; woods" |
*busk "bush; underbrush" |
MDu bosch, busch, Du bos "bush" |
L silva "forest" (OFr selve), L lignum "wood" (OFr lein) |
| broder "to embroider" (OFr brosder, broisder) |
*brosdōn, blend of *brost "bristle" and *brordōn "to embroider" |
G Borste "bristle"; OHG brortōn "to embroider, decorate", brort "needle" |
L pingere "to paint; embroider" (Fr peindre "to paint") |
| broyer "to grind, crush" (OFr brier) |
*brekan "to break" |
Du breken "to break" |
LL tritāre (Occ trissar "to grind", but Fr trier "to sort"), LL pistāre (It pestare "to pound, crush", OFr pester), L machīnare (Dalm maknur "to grind", Rom măcina, It macinare) |
| choisir "to choose" |
*kiosan "to taste, feel" |
Du kiezen "to choose", OS/OHG kiosan |
L eligēre (Fr élire "to elect"), VL exeligēre (cf. It scegliere), excolligere (Cat escollir, Sp escoger, Pg escolher) |
| chouette "barn owl" (OFr çuete, dim. of choë, choue "jackdaw") |
*kōwa, kāwa "chough, jackdaw" |
MDu couwe "rook", Du kauw, kaauw "chough" |
not distinguished in Latin: L būbō "horned owl", ulula "screech owl", ulucus (cf. Sp loco "crazy"), noctua |
| cresson "watercress" |
*kresso |
MDu kersse, korsse, Du kers, dial. kors |
L nasturtium, LL berula (but Fr berle "water parsnip") |
| danser "to dance" (OFr dancier) |
*dansōn |
OHG dansōn "to drag along, trail"; further to MDu densen, deinsen "to shrink back", Du deinzen "to stir; move away, back up", OHG dinsan "to pull, stretch" |
LL ballare (OFr baller, It ballare, Pg bailar) |
| déchirer "to rip, tear" (OFr escirer) |
*skerian "to cut, shear" |
MDu scēren, Du scheuren |
VL extracticāre (Prov estraçar, It stracciare), VL exquartiare "to rip into fours" (It squarciare, but Fr écarter "to move apart, distance"), exquintiare "to rip into five" (Cat/Occ esquinçar) |
| dérober "to steal, reave" (OFr rober) |
*rōbon "to steal" |
MDu rōven, Du roven "to steal" |
L subtrahere "to remove" (It sottrarre "to steal") |
| écang "scutcher, swingle" |
*swank "bat, rod" |
MDu swanc "wand, rod", Du (dial. Holland) zwang "rod"; further to MDu swinghel, swenghel "swingle", Du zwengel, zwingel |
L pistillum (Fr dial. pesselle "scutcher, swingle') |
| écran "screen" (OFr escran) |
*skrank |
OHG scrank "barrier", G Schrank "cupboard", Schranke "fence" |
L obex |
| écrevisse "shrimp, crayfish" (OFr crevice) |
*krebit |
Du kreeft "crab", G Krebs "crab" |
L cammārus "crayfish" (cf. Occ chambre, It gambero, Pg camarão) |
| éperon "spur" (OFr esporon) |
*sporo |
MDu spōre, Du spoor |
L calcar |
| étrier "stirrup" (OFr estrieu, estrief) |
*stīgarēp |
MDu steegereep, Du (dial. West Flemish) steegreep |
LL stapia (later ML stapēs), ML saltatorium (cf. MFr saultoir) |
| flèche "arrow" |
*fliukka |
MDu vliecke, OS fliuca, MLG fliecke "long arrow" |
L sagitta (OFr saete, Pg seta) |
| franc "free, exempt; straightforward, without hassle" (LL francus "freeborn, freedman") |
*frank "freeborn; unsubjugated, answering to no one", nasalized variant of *frāki "rash, untamed, impudent" |
Du (dial. Flemish) vrank "carefree, brazen", OHG franko "free man"; MDu vrec, Du vrek "insolent" |
L ingenuus "freeborn" |
| frapper "to hit, strike" |
*hrappan "to jerk, snatch" |
MDu reppen "to move", Du reppen "to hurry", OHG hraffōn "to snatch", G raffen "to grab" |
L ferire (OFr ferir) |
| frelon "hornet" (OFr furlone, ML fursleone) |
*hurslo |
MDu horsel, Du horzel |
L crābrō (cf. It calabrone) |
| freux "rook" (OFr frox, fru) |
*hrōk |
MDu roek, Du roec |
non-native to the Mediterranean |
| garder "guard" (OFr. guarder) |
*wardōn |
MDu waerden, OS wardōn |
L cavere, servare |
| givre "frost (substance)" |
*gibara "slobber" |
LG Geiber, G Geifer "drool, slobber" |
L gelū (cf. Fr gel "frost (event); freezing") |
| grappe "bunch (of grapes)" (OFr crape, grape "hook, grape stalk") |
*krāppa "hook" |
MDu crappe "hook", Du (dial. Holland) krap "krank", G Krapfe "hook", (dial. Franconian) Krape "torture clamp, vice" |
L racemus (Fr raisin "grape", Prov rasim "bunch", Cat raïm, Sp racimo) |
| guérir "to heal, cure" (OFr garir "to defend") |
*warian "to protect, defend" |
MDu weren, Du weeren |
L sānāre (Sard sanare, Sp/Pg sanar), medicāre (Dalm medcuar "to heal") |
| guigne "sweet cherry" (OFr guisne) |
*wīksina |
G Weichsel "sour cherry", (dial. Rhine Franconian) Waingsl, (dial. East Franconian) Wassen, Wachsen |
non-native to the Mediterranean |
| hanneton "cockchafer" |
*hāno "rooster" + -eto (diminutive suffix) with sense of "beetle, weevil" |
Du haan "rooster", leliehaantje "lily beetle", bladhaantje "leaf beetle", G Hahn "rooster", (dial. Rhine Franconian) Hahn "sloe bug, shield bug", Lilienhähnchen "lily beetle" |
LL bruchus "chafer" (cf. Fr dialectal brgue, beùrgne, brégue), cossus (cf. SwRom coss, OFr cosson "weevil") |
| héron "heron" |
*haigro, variant of *hraigro |
OHG heigaro "heron", G Häher "jackdaw", ON hegri "heron" |
L ardea |
| houx "holly" |
*hulis |
MDu huls, Du hulst |
L aquifolium (Sp acebo), later VL acrifolium (Occ grefuèlh, agreu, Cat grèvol, It agrifoglio) |
| jardin "garden" |
*gardo |
Du gaard "garden", OS gardo "garden" |
L hortus |
| lécher "to lick" (OFr lechier "to live in debauchery") |
*lekkōn "to lick" |
Du likken, OHG leckōn |
L lingere (Sard línghere), lambere (Sp lamer, Pg lamber) |
| maçon "bricklayer" (OFr masson, machun) |
*mattio "mason" |
OHG mezzo "stonemason", meizan "to beat, cut", G Metz, Steinmetz "mason" |
VL murator (Occ murador, Sard muradore, It muratóre) |
| marais "marsh, swamp" |
*marisk "marsh" |
MDu marasch, meresch, maersc, Du marsk |
L paludem (Occ palun, It palude) |
| patte "paw" |
*patta "foot sole" |
obsolete Du (dial. Flemish) pad, patte, LG Pad "sole of the foot"; further to G Patsche "instrument for striking the hand", Patschfuss "web foot", patschen "to dabble", (dial. Bavarian) patzen "to blot, pat, stain" |
LL branca "paw" (Sard brànca, Rom brîncă, but Fr branche "treelimb") |
| poche "pocket" |
*poka "pouch" |
MDu poke, G dial. Pfoch "pouch, change purse" |
L bulga "leather bag" (Fr bouge "bulge"), LL bursa "coin purse" (Fr bourse "money pouch, purse", It bórsa, Sp/Pg bolsa) |
| sale "dirty" |
*salo "pale, sallow" |
MDu salu, saluwe "discolored, dirty", Du zaluw |
L succidus (cf. It sucido, Sp sucio, Pg sujo, Ladin scich, Friul soç) |
| saule "willow" |
*salha "sallow, pussy willow" |
OHG salaha, G Salweide "pussy willow", OE sealh |
L salix "willow" (OFr sauz, sausse) |
| saisir "to seize, snatch" (ML sacīre "to lay claim to, appropriate") |
*sakan "to take legal action" |
OS sakan "to accuse", OHG sahhan "to strive, quarrel, rebuke", OE sacan "to quarrel, claim by law, accuse" |
VL aderigere (OFr aerdre "to seize") |
| tamis "sieve" (It tamigio) |
*tamisa |
MDu temse, teemse, Du teems "sifter" |
L crībrum (Fr crible "riddle, sift") |
| tomber "to fall" (OFr tumer "to somersault") |
*tūmon "to tumble" |
OS/OHG tūmōn "to tumble", Du tuimelen "to fall" |
L cædere (obsolete Fr cheoir) |
| troène "privet" (dialectal truèle, ML trūlla) |
*trugil "hard wood; small trough" |
OHG trugilboum, harttrugil "dogwood; privet", G Hartriegel "dogwood", dialectally "privet", (dial. Eastern) Trögel, archaic (dial. Swabian) Trügel "small trough, trunk, basin" |
L ligustrum |
| tuyau "pipe; hose" (OFr tuiel, tuel) |
*þūta |
MDu tūte "nipple; pipe", Du tuit "spout, nozzle" |
L canna "reed; pipe" (It/SwRom/FrProv cana "pipe") |
Frankish also had an influence on Latin itself; Latin words with Frankish roots include sacire, meaning "seize" (from Frankish sekjan, related to English "seek").
English also has many words with Frankish roots, usually through Old French eg. random (via Old French randon, from rant "a running"), scabbard (via Anglo-French * escauberc, from * skar-berg), grape, stale, march (via Old French marche, from * marka) among others.
Most Germanic words (especially ones from Frankish) with the phoneme w, changed it to gu when entering French and other Romance languages. Perhaps the best known example is the Frankish werra "to repel" (Compare English "war") which entered modern French as guerre and guerra in Italian, Occitan, Catalan, Spanish and Portuguese.
There were five primary sources for Germanic borrowings in French:
- early borrowings that were either widespread in Late Latin or at least common to a large part of the Mediterranean (S. Gaul, Spain), from Goths or Visigoths
- choisir, guerre, heaume, riche, rôtir
- Germans from around the Rhine, when Trier became the capital (also counterbalanced by mutual borrowing INTO Western Germanic)
- blesser, fourbir, garder vs. Kampf, kaufen, Kelch, Keller, Essig, Winzer
- confederates, settlers, liegemen (læti)
- bâtir, maçon, crosse, haie, grêle, jardin
- Salian Franks (Merovingian period) 6thc-9thc
- gagner, haïr, laid, Chilperic, Merovingian-period onomastics
- Rhineland Franks (Carolingian period) 9thc.-early10thc.
- tiois, and cavalry vocabulary - éperon, étrier, haubert
Notes and References
Further Information
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