| Abstrakt: |
The article deals with the semantic motivation of names denoting beech-tree (Fagus sylvatica), basing on the material recorded in subdialects of European languages as answers to the questionnaire of the Atlas Linguarum Europae and presented in a geolinguistic map. In general, ten motivational groups of names have been established, most important of them being: 1) names based on IE. *bhāg-i o-, cf. Engl. beech, Gm. Buche, Sp. haya, Port. faia, It. faggio, Russ., Ukr., Pol., Cz., Bulg. buk, Lith. bùkas, Latv. skābardis / guoba etc.; 2) forms derived from Latin vespices "shrub", cf. Friul.Lad. vespol(a); 3) forms derived from Latin pertica "long perch", cf. Fr. epache; 4) forms derived from Latin cerrus "oak", cf. Rum. terş; 5) names based on Frank. *haistr- "young tree or bush", cf. Fr. hêtre; 6) Hung. bükkfa, a name composed by bükk of obscure origin and meaning and fa "tree"; 7) forms derived from IE. *ask "ash-tree", cf. Gr. όζςά, Alb. ah. Having examined the attested forms regarding their origin and semantics, the author concludes that the names to denote a beech-tree or its cognates, elm or box-tree, are rich in variants in the Baltic languages, mostly due to the influence of Standard Latvian or Lithuanian. However, beech-trees growing near Grobiľa are witnesses of ancient contacts between the Baltic and Albanian languages. Some names to denote a beech-tree can be found in Lithuanian phraseology. They frequently appear among both Latvian and Lithuanian toponyms as well as anthroponyms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
