The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited - Gaelg

The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
THE NAMES FOR BRITAIN AND IRELAND REVISITED
1
GEORGE BRODERICK
Universität Mannheim
Abstract: Discussions on the provenance of the names of Britain (Albion and Prydain) and Ireland
(Ériu / Íriu) have occupied the attention of scholars since the end of the nineteenth century down to the
present day. Suggestions as to the origin have included a variety of languages ranging from Celtic to
Hamito-Semitic. This article suggests a simpler solution in seeking to show that the foregoing names
belong together in a single concept.
Zusammenfassung: Beiträge zur Erklärung der Namen Britanniens (Albion und Prydain) und Irlands
(Ériu / Íriu) haben Wissenschaftler seit Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts bis zum heutigen Tag beschäftigt
und haben dabei eine keltische sowie eine hamito-semitische Herkunft vorgeschlagen. Dieser Beitrag
bietet eine Lösung an, die die obigen Namen in einem einfachen Zusammenhang verbindet.
Introduction
The vexed question of the names for Britain and Ireland has occupied the attention of scholars
and academics from the latter part of the 19th century, if not before, down to the present day.
The discussion has centred around three names, two for Britain and one for Ireland, namely
(for Britain) Albiōn and Prydyn / Prydein (Prydain), and (for Ireland) Ériu / Íriu. Over the
course of time new and varied perspectives on the issue, from inside as well as from outside
the world of Celtic Studies, have been put forward and discussed, some more credible than
others. The present paper seeks to present a slightly adjusted perspective to the above names
that may help simplify matters. Before embarking on this exercise a short outline of current
thinking on the matter would perhaps be of benefit. The current view on the meaning or
import of these names from various accounts seems briefly to be as follows:
1. Contributions to date
1.1. Albiōn
Albiōn is the earliest known name for the island of Britain. It later became restricted to
Scotland. An early contribution to a discussion on Albiōn was made by Alfred Holder in 1896
(Holder 1896: 83 s.v. Albion) who translated it as ‘weißland’ (‘white land’), so called from its
coastal white chalk cliffs.
Albiōn n-st. ‘weißland’ von seinen kreidefelsen am meer, name der ganzen brittanischen insel, später
bloß Schottland, ir. Alba, Alpa, Elbu, aus *Albiōn, gen. Alban, d. acc. Albain, cy. Alban (Holder 1896:
83 s.v. Albion).
However, Julius Pokorny in 1925 (Pokorny 1925: 197) regarded the name as non-Indo-European, having nothing at all to do with Latin albus ‘white’, and suggested that it meant ‘hill’,
from a non-Indo-European stem *alb- ‘Berg’ (‘mountain’):
1
First published in Beiträge zur Namenforschung 44/2 (2009): 151-172. Here with minor additions and adjustments, 2015.
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The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
Albu bedeutet zweifellos ‚Hügel’; es ist dasselbe Wort, das die Griechen mit Albion wiedergaben: urkelt.
*Albiū, Gen. Albionos, der älteste Name Englands [rect. Britanniens], der dann später auf Schottland
eingeschränkt wurde. Mit lat. albus ‚weiß’ hat der Name nichts zu tun; 2 es liegt zweifellos ein nichtindg.
Stamm alb- ‚Berg’ zugrunde, der in Alba Longa, den Alba-Namen hochge-legener italienischer Städte,
Alba ‚schwäbische Alp’, dem Namen der Alpen, usw. vorliegt (Pokorny 1925: 197).
In 1959, however, Pokorny (1959: 30), more guarded in his comment, asked how far the
element albho- ‘white’ could be associated with Albiōn and its Welsh descendent elfydd
‘earth, world’ (or in connection with the chalk cliffs), or whether the name was of non-IndoEuropean provenance:
albho- ‚weiß’. Gr. αλφός ‚weißer Ausschlag’, lat. albus ‚weiß’; cymr. elfydd m. ‚Erde, Welt’ aus *albίio[...]. Fraglich ist [...], ob oder in welchem Umfange Namen wie gall./lat. Albiōn, mir. Albbu, gen. Alban
‚Britannien’ (zu cymr. elfydd? oder von den weißen Kreidefelsen?), lat. alpes, Aλπεις (alti montes?) und
die auf ital. ligur. und kelt. Gebiete häufigen Ortsnamen wie Alba, Albium u. dgl. auf den Begriff ‚weiß’
zurückgehen oder aber nicht idg. Herkunft sind [...] (Pokorny 1959: 30).
In 1946 T. F. O’Rahilly (1946: 385) took the view that Albiōn was of Celtic origin:
The oldest name of the island of Britain is recorded by classical writers as Albion (Gr. Αλβίων, Αλoυίων,
Αλβίoν). This name, which represents Celt. *Albiū, gen. *Albionos, has been preserved, but with altered
meanings, in Irish and Welsh. Mod. Ir. Alba (OIr. Albu) means ‘North Britain, Scotland’. Its Welsh
counterpart elfydd (OW. elbid) has become a common noun meaning ‘the earth, terra firma; compare
OIr. íriu ‘land, ground’, which is ultimately a doublet of Ériu ‘Ireland’ (O’Rahilly 1946: 385).
Nevertheless, the association of the name with the ‘coastal white chalk cliffs’ seems to have
prevailed as the accepted interpretation of Albiōn and remained unchallenged until 1990 when
Wolfgang Meid (1990a: 97-119 (107-108), 1990b: 435-439), noting the hitherto accepted
thesis of the name’s association with the ‘coastal white chalk cliffs’, suggested that the
reference may be more cosmological than real and offered the contrast *albio- (the world of
light above the earth), as opposed to *dubno- (the earth with its dark depths), as a possible
solution, paralleling this notion with Slavic svjet ‘world’ = ‘light’:
Albu ist in der alt- und mittelirischen Literatur der Name für Schottland; [...]. Ursprünglich erstreckte sich
der Name auf die gesamte britische Hauptinsel, wie auch Beda am Anfang seiner englischen Kirchengeschichte betont (I, 1) [...] (die Stelle geht wohl auf Plinius zurück): Britannia Oceani insula cui
quondam Albion nomen fuit [...]. Dem Namen Albiōn liegt wohl das indogermanische Farbadjektiv
*albho- ‚weiß’ zugrunde [...]. Nach einer älteren Theorie wäre die britannische Hauptinsel nach den
weißen Kreidefelsen ihrer Küste benannt worden, vielleicht von frühen indogermanischen Einwanderern.
Dass auch schon vor den Kelten indogermanische Einwanderer nach Britannien gekommen waren, dafür
gibt es auch sonst Anhaltspunkte, namentlich in der Gewässernamengebung, die in der älteren Schicht
vorkeltisch, aber indogermanisch ist („alteuropäische“ Hydronomie nach H. Krahe).
Mir ist jedoch wahrscheinlicher, dass der Name nicht eine real-topographische, sondern eine mythologische Signifikanz hatte. Im Kymrischen gibt es in poetischen Texten ein Wort elfydd m., das ‚Welt’
bedeutet und aufgrund der kymrischen Lautgesetze auf britannisch *albiio-, indogermanisch folglich
*albhiio-, zurückgehen muss. [...] Es scheint also, dass in einem ursprünglichen kosmologischen System
*albio- die lichte Oberwelt und *dubno- die Erde mit ihren dunklen Tiefen, gelagert in Wasser, bezeichnete. Dass man seinen Lebensraum als „die Welt“ bezeichnet, ist verständlich und hat viele Parallelen.
Was die Assoziation mit ‚Licht’ betrifft, sei auf slawisch svjet ‚Welt’ = ‚Licht’ verwiesen [...] (Meid
1990a: 107-108; see also Meid 1990b: 435-439).
Meid's interpretation of Albiōn has seemingly held sway until the present.
2
In this respect Eric Hamp (Hamp 1992: 87) took a similar view: “[...] One will note that I see no connexion with the oronym
Alpēs nor any secure way of relating names of rivers such as that of the Elbe”.
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The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
1.2. Prydyn / Prydein
The generally accepted view here is that this name, noted in the Greek of Diodorus Siculus
(ca. 30 BC) as Πρεττανική, variant Bρεττανική (< Bρεττανοί) (?from Pytheas ca. 325 BC
Πρεταν-), coming into Latin as Britanni, is Celtic in origin, namely *Pritanī (> W. Prydain
‘Britain’), *Pritenī (> W. Prydyn ‘Picts, Pictland’ -> OIr. Cruithin, Cruithni ‘Picts’ < PCelt.
*Qriteni(i)) (cf. Hamp 1983: 289-290). Jackson (1955: 158-160) believes the former to have
been current in southern Britain, the latter in the north. As Holder (1896: 552 s.v. Brittani)
puts it:
Brittanī [...] Die griechische schreibung (von Pytheas?) Пρεταν-, [...] hängt nach Thurneysen und
d’Arbois de Jubainville mit cy. Prydain, älter Prydyn und Prydein zusammen, das bei den Iren in der
form Cruithn-ig bezeichnung der Picten-stämme ist; grundform *Qritano- oder *Qritino- (Holder 1896:
552 s.v. Brittani).
O’Rahilly (1946: 448, 450-451) expresses the situation more fully:
The Celtic name of Britain, *Albiū (whence Ir. Alba), was known to Greek writers, and is recorded as
Albion by Pliny, who evidently drew his information from a Greek source. The Greeks more frequently
referred to Britain as ἡ Πρεττανική (or Bρεττανική) ‘the Pritanic (or Britanic) island’; compare the
synonymous Welsh Ynys Prydain. The Romans invented the name Britannia ‘the land inhabited by the
Britanni’ on the model of Galli : Gallia and the like; and this was borrowed as Bρεττανία by late Greek
writers. The close resemblance, both in form and meaning, between *Pritanī (Πρεττανoί) and Britannī
suggests the question whether both names were not originally one [...] (O’Rahilly 1946: 448).
The facts, certain or probable, regarding the two names may be [so stated]. *Pritanī or *Pritenī, the name
of a people dominant in both Britain (*Albiū) and Ireland (*Īvernā) was borrowed by the Greeks as
Πρεττανoί. The borrowing may have taken place as early as 500 BC. In the course of time new invaders
from Gaul deprived the Pritani of their dominion over the south of Britain, though they retained their
hold on the north of the island. Notwithstanding the encroachments of the later invaders, Britain
continued to be regarded as ‘the island of the Pritani’ [...]. After the Roman conquest of Gallia
Narbonensis ca. 121 BC, if not before [...], the Romans [may] have heard of Britain from the Gauls. The
earliest Latin name for the inhabitants of Britain is Britanni. The two names, Pritani and Britanni both
mean the same thing, viz. ‘the inhabitants of Britain’. They differ in point of date; the former, in its Greek
shape Πρετ[τ]ανoί, is attested, indirectly, several centuries earlier than the latter. [There] is no reason to
[...] doubt that [Britanni] accurately represents the name of the inhabitants of Britain current among the
Gauls ca. 100 BC. Accordingly we are justified in assuming that the change of P- to B- occurred neither
in British or in Latin, but in Gaulish. From the Gauls the Romans [also] borrowed [...] the hypocoristic
formation Brittones. [...] The Celts of Roman Britain adopted Brittones [later W. Brython] from the
Romans as a name for themselves; but in the native names *Pritanī and *Pritenī they retained the P-, as
we can see from the Welsh Prydain and Prydyn. The Gaulish change of P- to B- in Britanni < *Pritanī
can only be explained as the result of analogical influence [...]. [It] is not rash to suppose that Gaulish
possessed not a few proper names and other words beginning with brit-, which might represent either IE
bhrt- or IE mrt- [...]3 (O’Rahilly 1946: 450-451).
This seems to be the accepted view. However, with regard to the P- / B- contrast, Helmut
Birkhan (2007: 32-33), regards O’Rahilly’s view (that B- in Gaulish developed by analogy
with existing names, such as Brito-maros, etc) as nur eine Notlösung. He notes:
[...] Ist die bei Pytheas überlieferte Form Πρεττανικαί wirklich authentisch? Britannien muß ja eigentlich
seit eh und je als Hauptlieferant des Zinns im Gesichtskreis der Römer gestanden haben. Auch wenn sie
die Insel nicht selbst bereisten, so haben sie gewiß von Händlern ihren Namen in Erfahrung gebracht, da
sie doch den wertvollen Rohstoff zur Bronzeerzeugung lieferte. Ich kann an die ad hoc-Annahme einer
lat. phonetischen Adaption nicht glauben. Wir müssen also für Britania usw. eine andere Lösung suchen
[...] (Birkhan 2007: 33).
3
In Gaulish and Britonnic mr- fell together with br- at an early date, as in Allo-broges: (O’Rahilly 1946: 451 fn. 3; cf. also
Birkhan 2007: 36).
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The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
In looking for such a solution Birkhan suggests PIE. *(s)mer- ‘grease’ (cf. the North British
tribe Smertae), with excrescent -t *smert-, zero grade *mrt- > PCelt. *mrit- > *brit-; cf. Gaul.
-brog- as in the Gaulish tribal name Allo-brog-es, W., Bret. bro, but OIr. mruig ‘piece of land’
(germ. *markō ‚mark’). And so using *kʷritanī as a model Britani would have a similar
meaning? That is to say, Britani would mean ‘those who smear themselves with paint, grease,
anoint themselves, etc.
Britani Idg. *(s)mer- ‚Schmer’, mit -t- Ableitung *smert-, Schwundstufe *mrt- > urkelt. *mrit- > *brit-;
vgl. gall. -brog- in [kelt. Stammname] Allo-brog-es, kymr., bret., bro, aber: air. mruig ‚Landstück’ (germ.
*markō ‚Mark’). Nach dem Vorbild von *kʷritanī bedeutungsähnliches Britani ? (Birkhan 2006: Handout; 2007a: 35).
With regard to the meaning, the hitherto accepted derivation of *Pritanī / *Pretanī is ‘figured
folk, tattooed folk’ from PIE *qrt- ‘cut’ (Latin curtus, Ir. cruth, W. pryd ‘form, shape’ <
PCelt. *kʷritu-, PIE *kʷŗtu- (cf. Meid 1990a: 109), seemingly dating from the time of Thurneysen and de Jubainville, as noted by Holder (1896: 552 s.v. Brittani), still holds sway today.
1.3. Ériu / Íriu
So far as is known, one of the first to venture into this area was John Rhŷs in 1875 (Rhŷs
1873-75: 196). He links the name with PIE *pìvar, fem. *pìvarja, 'fat, swelling':
Now suppose this h [were] to represent an original p, then Hérinn might, with the assistance of Welsh
Iwerddon, be restored to the form Pìveriana, which, though not very transparent, must be allowed to
remind one of Πιερία traced [...] to *pìvar, fem. *pìvarja, ‘fat, swelling’ [...] (Rhŷs 1873-75: 196).
Rhŷs's argument is interpreted by Graham Isaac (2006: 1) thus:
Ériu < Pcelt. *Īweryon < PIE *piHuerion- [(? = Skt. pīvarī ‘fat’ f. = Gk. πίειρα (of soil) 'fertile' < PIE
*piH-uer-ih2, so = OIr. íriu ‘earth’. Consistent with W. Iwerddon (Rhŷs 1873-75: 196 [Isaac’s interpretation 2006: 1]).
In commenting on Rhŷs T. F. O’Rahilly (1943: 9) noted:
Rhys long ago suggested (RC ii, 196, and iii, 87) that OIr. Ériu (later Éire) ‘Ireland’, and its Welsh
counterpart Iwerddon, might be cognate with Gr. πίειρα; IE root pī / pĭ). This etymology, though
afterwards discounted by Rhys himself, has acquired a certain vogue [...]. The crucial weakness of this
etymology is that, while it might pass as a possible explanation of Iwerddon, it quite fails to provide an
explanation of the ē- of Ériu [...] (O’Rahilly 1943: 9).
Holder (1904: 99-100) makes the following comment:
*Iveriū nach Rhŷs und Windisch aus *Piuĕri-o aus fem. stamm piveriā, pīvarī, zu air.pīvan, griech. πί(F)ων, femin. πίειρα ‚fett, die fette, fruchtbare’, vgl. landesnamen Πιερία, und idg. nominal-suffix -ien-;
nach d’Arbois de Jubainville gen. *Iuĕrĭnos, dat. (loc.) *Iuĕrĭnĭ, acc. *Iuĕrĭonĕm, urir. nominat. *Iuĕrĭiu,
gen. *Iuĕrĭnnos, dat. *Iuĕrĭnnĭ, acc. *Iuĕrĭnnen ; air. nominat. Ériu, f. Hériu, Héri ; gen. Hérenn, Érenn,
Éirenn, Éirend, dat. Erin, acc. Éirinn, Érinn [...] cy. Iwerddun (dd für j), Iwerdon [...]; Ιέρνη, die älteste
griech. form für ΙFέρνη, hat das ursprüngl. F verloren, vgl. Ιουέρνη, lat. Iuberna; Hiberni, Hibernia sind
latinisierte formen [...] wahrscheinlich mit anlenung an lateinisch hibernus [...] ‚die insel Irland’ (Holder
1904: 99-100) s.v. *Iveriū).
O’Rahilly (1943: 7-10) promoted the same line but in more detail. He noted that the polity
name Érainn “was traditionally linked with Ériu ‘Ireland’” and that Íriu, originally a doublet
of Ériu, is to be equated with *Iverijū, W. Iwerddon ‘Ireland’:
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The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
Ptolemy, following an earlier Greek geographer, places the Iverni (Ιoύερνοι) in the south of Ireland. An
older Greek form of their name was Iernoi, preserved in Avienus, who speaks of gens Hiernorum (Ora
Maritima, 111). The Greek name for Ireland is Iernē, which in some later writers (e.g. Ptolemy) becomes
Ivernia. The best known Latin name of Ireland, Hibernia, employed by Caesar, Pliny and Tacitus, is a
modification of Ivernia under the influence of hībernus ‘wintry’ [...]. In Irish tradition a people known as
Érainn [...] are, like Ptolemy’s Iverni, connected especially with the south of Ireland [...]. Also, just as the
name Iverni is obviously connected with Ivernia ‘Ireland’, so the name Érainn was traditionally
associated with Ériu ‘Ireland’. Hence there is a very strong initial presumption that Érainn and Iverni are
two closely related names for the one people [...].
[Érainn] stands for Celt. *Ēvernī, which in OIr. would give *É’rn (earlier *Évirn) [...], the word became
in Mid. Ir. Érainn, gen. Èrann [...]. Pokorny (KZ xlvii, 233ff) has pointed out that the Irish name [Ériu]
can only go back to *Ēverijū [Lat. Evernia, Ebernia in Adamnan’s Vita S. Columbae]. On the other
hand, we may safely equate OIr. íriu, gen. írenn, ‘land’ with *Iverijū, W. Iwerddon; originally a doublet
of Ériu ‘Ireland’, íriu acquired the general sense of ‘land, ground’, just as *Albijū ‘Britain’ (OIr. Albu,
id.) has in Welsh elfydd acquired the sense of ‘land’ (O’Rahilly 1943: 7-10).4
However, in 1925 Pokorny (1925: 202) held Ériu to be derived from PCelt. *Ēverjō, PIE
*epi-ver-jō, and took the name to mean ‘raised land free from water between swamps’, i.e. ‘an
island’.
[...] Ich möchte nun, vorausgesetzt dass Ériu kein vorkeltischer Name ist, versuchen, eine Etymologie des
Namens vorzuschlagen. Die älteste Form muss als Ēverjō angesetzt werden, wie ich KZ 47, 233 gezeigt
habe, und als Bedeutung kommt ‚Hügel, geschützte Anhöhe’ in Frage. Da nun Pedersen (Vergl. Gramm.
II 551, 653) auch fürs Irische die idg. Präposition *epi nachgewiesen hat, dürfen wir unbedenklich
Ēverjō auf idg. *epi-ver-jō zurückführen; die Wurzel ver ‚umschliessen’ liegt auch in ahd. warid, nhd.
Werder vor, mit genau derselben Bedeutung, die ich für Ériu annehme: ‚erhöhtes, wasserfreies Land
zwischen Sümpfen’, daher Insel [...]. Dazu kommt noch, dass Irland eine weite Ebene darstellt, die
ringsumher an den Rändern von Bergen eingeschlossen ist. Lautlich ist die Gleichung jedenfalls
unanfechtbar (Pokorny 1925: 202).
In 2000 Patrizia de Bernardo-Stempel (2000: 102), returning to the “pīvarī” thesis, noted the
following:
Ιουερνις ‚the fertile place’, a town in the Gulf-Stream-exposed south of Ireland, contains - as an original
*(p)iwer-n-ĭ-s - that same heteroclitic nominal base *pīwer/n- ‘fat’ from which the Irish common noun
for ‘soil, land, earth’ (OIr. íriu gen. írenn) originated (IEW: 793f.) [...] (de Bernardo-Stempel 2000: 102).
The “pīvarī” thesis (for want of a better term), seemingly first muted by Rhŷs (1875), has
essentially been accepted down to the present, cf. also Peter Schrijver (1995) 5 and Graham
Isaac (2006).
Latterly Graham Isaac sought to show that in Welsh tradition Ywerddon originally equated
with Ériu and Iwerddon with Íriu.
In medieval Welsh inherited appellative[s] *iwerddon and Ywerddon ‘Ireland’ were crossed, the form
Iwerddon (in 14th century) eventually coming to dominate for ‘Ireland’, while appellative *iwerddon
came to survive only in LNN, understood folk-etymologically as Y Werddon ‘The Greenery’ [...] (Isaac
2006: 3).
He took Ériu to be a development of PIE *h1epi-h2uer-io- (adj.) meaning ‘on, upon, at, by,
near, of the water, stream’, supplying Greek parallels, and with an n-stem formed thereon, viz.
*h1epi-h2uer-io-n- to mean ‘place on, upon, at, by, near the water, stream’, or alternatively
from Celt. *eiweryon- < *epiwer(r)yon- < *h1epi-h2uer-s-ion- meaning ‘place par excellence
on which it rains’?:
4
5
However, see Hamp (1983: 291) §2.3. below.
Semantically and formally similar, noted Schrijver (1995: 288), is W. elfydd (f/m) ‘world, earth’, OIr. Albu (f n) ‘Britain,
Scotland’ < *albiiū.
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The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
(Y) Werddon in W LNN < appellative *iwerddon ‘fertile place, fertile earth’ < Celt. *īweryon- < PIE
*piH-uer-ih2-(on-) = Skt. pīvarī ‘fat’ f. = Gk. πίειρα ‘fat, fertile’ = OIr. íriu ‘earth’, as distinct from MW
Ywerdon ‘Ireland’ < *ēweriyon- < Celt. *eiweryon- < PIE *h1epi-uer-ion- = OIr. Ériu.
*h1epi-h2uer-io- adj. ‘on, upon, at, by, near, of the water, stream’ (Type Gk. ἐπίγειος ‘on or of the earth’,
ἐπιθαλάσσιος ‘lying on the shore’, ἐπιπόντιος ’upon the sea’, ἐπιποτάµιος ‘on or by the river’, etc).
n-stem formed thereon *h1epi-h2uer-io-n- ‘place on, upon, at, by, near the water, stream’
> Celt. *eiweryon-. Alternatively: *h2uer-s- verbal ‘to rain’ (LIV 259-60), nominal *h2uor-s-ó- ‘rain'
(Skt. varsá-) *h2uer-s-eh2- (Ep.Gk. ἐέρση ‘dew’ < *ἀέρση), Celt. *eiweryon- < *epiwer(r)yon- <
*h1epi-h2uer-s-ion- ‘place par excellence on which it rains’? (Isaac 2006: 3).
1.4. Comment6
1.4.1. Albiōn
Wolfgang Meid’s (1990a/b) cosmological interpretation of Albiōn as ‘world, light’, bearing
some mythological significance, presumably had the meaning of something like ‘our world’.
It is true that some polity names can be ideological, thus indicating how people wished to
perceive themselves, e.g. the British polities Catuvellauni 'good (i.e. superb) in battle' (PNRB
305), Ordouices 'hammer-warriors' (Sims-Williams 2000: 8), the Gaulish polity Aeduiu 'les
ardents; the valiant ones' (Dottin 1980: 90, Holder I: 65 s.v. Aiduos), and as such could well
fit into an ideological or mythological framework. Though whether the notion of "our world"
was common to the British polities as a whole, bearing in mind Caesar's comments7 concerning inland vis-à-vis coastal polities (Caesar BG V, 12) is uncertain.
In 1992 Eric Hamp (1992: 88-89) expressed some semantic objections to Meid’s thesis. He
regards the forms *albio- and *dubno- either as near synonyms or applicable to both domains
of the “upper and heavenly world” and “lower earthly world”, not as opposites:
[...] My difficulty with Meid’s reconstructed semantics [...] arises in bridging the hypothesis that *albioonce denoted the light, upper, heavenly world, while *dubno- denoted the dark and black (*dubu-), deep
and lower (*dubni-), earthly world, and yet these two terms turn out in the attestation accessible to us as
near synonyms or else as applicable to both these different domains. This distinction becomes all the
more difficult to draw when we are presented with yet another synonym bitu- as a plausible candidate.
The case of *dubno- in this framework is not aided if, as I (not alone) have suggested (Studia Celtica
12/13, 1977/78, 10) annyf(y)n contains the negative prefix. We need, then, a mechanism, a channel, a
motivating neutralization to transport us from the oppositional duality of *albio- ≠ *dubno- to the
inclusive elfydd of kyfrwng nef ac eluyd (R 1390, 40-1, 14th cent.). Can we manage this by a mid-term
6
7
It is my view that when dealing with place-names we should perhaps bear in mind that such names are normally bestowed
by people who have direct contact with the land and its coasts and inland areas, etc, such as farmers, seafarers, merchants,
etc. The vocabulary usually found in place-names is relatively basic, since the idea is to differentiate between place A and
place B in the simplest terms possible. In addition, the name of a given feature, whether it be a mountain, town, field, etc,
implies that such a feature is different from similar examples of the same in its neighbourhood, to such an extent as to
warrant the name it has received, e.g. (Gaelic) cnoc mór ‘big hill’ as opposed to cnoc beag ‘little hill’. I take the view that,
as a general rule of thumb, the more mundane the meaning of a place-name, the more credible it is likely to be; the more
fanciful the interpretation, the less credible it is likely to be. In this respect the application of cognitive linguistics is clearly
relevant to place-name research (cf. Ungerer & Schmid 1996, Hough 2007).
Britanniae pars interior ab eis incolitur, quos natos in insula ipsi memoria proditum dicunt, maritima pars ab eis, qui
praedae ac belli inferendi causa ex Belgio transierunt (qui omnes fere eis nominibus civitatum appellantur, quibus orti ex
civitatibus eo pervenerunt) et bello illato ibi permanserunt atque agros colere coeperunt (Caesar BG V, 12).
('The inland parts of Britain is inhabited by tribes declared in their own tradition to be indigenous to the island, the maritime
part by tribes that migrated at an earlier time from Belgium to seek booty by invasion. Nearly all of these latter are called
after the names of the states from which they sprang when they went to Britain; and after the invasion they abode there and
began to till the fields') (Edwards).
6
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
value? e.g. yn annwfn is eluyd. yn awr uch eluyd (T 20.8-9, 13th cent.). If so, the British evidence seems
richer and more helpful ultimately than the Irish.
In that case, we seem to have in annwfn an intensive *ande-dubno-. On the other hand, we have plenty of
evidence that the Otherworld was *uindos (> OIr. find, Welsh gwyn). We also know that originally
*dhubh-ú- ‘black’ and *dhub-ni- ‘deep’ were formed from different bases that later fell fortuitously
together (Hamp 1992: 88-89).
Pokorny's (1925: 197) suggestion of 'hill', as noted above, was not developed further. Indeed,
it would be difficult to accept Pokorny's interpretation in the context of the hilly geography of
most of the islands within the British / Irish archipelago. In view of this and of Hamp's
semantic reservations, Meid's and Pokorny's interpretations would need to be treated with
caution.
1.4.2. Prydyn (Prydan) / Prydein (Prydain)
The suggestion that *Pritanī means or suggests ‘figured or tattooed people’ implies that this
practice was restricted only to the people of Britain. The notion of painting or tattooing may
perhaps have been subconsciously reinforced by the comment from the 4th century classical
writer Claudianus who referred to the Picts as non falso nomine Pictos ‘the well-named Picts’
thus perpetuating what seems to have been Roman folk-etymology deriving the name from, or
equating it with, the Latin adjective pictus ‘painted, tattooed’.8 However, Wilhelm Nicolaisen
(1996: 5) takes the view that:
If the Roman etymology were correct, Pict-, or rather Pect-, would go back to PIE *peik- ‘painted’ but if
that were so, the Celtic derivative would have lost its initial p-, thus leaving us with something like *ekt-. A p-Celtic Pict (< *Pekt-) would, however, have started out as something like *Quekt-, whatever
that may have meant, and a meaning like ‘painted’ is unacceptable. The most closely related names are
Poitiers and Poitou in France, which started out as Pictones and Pictavi respectively [...] (Nicolaisen
1996:5).
In addition, Helmut Birkhan (2007a: 32) demonstrates that body art was not only practised by
the Britanni. Classical authors, he notes, make clear that the practice was fairly widespread.
Pliny (Naturalis Historia XXII, 2) notes that the Dacians (Daci) and Sarmatians (Sarmatae)
also indulged in body paint (inscribunt)9 and Tacitus (Germania 43) tells us that the German
polity the Harii, in demonstrating their fierceness, “blacken their shields and dye their bodies
(tincta corpora)”. The practice of body art is also found among Continental Celts, to judge
from depictions on coins where tattooed cheeks can be seen (cf. Birkhan 2007a: 32 fn. 28).
Even Meid (1990a: 109) comments that the notion that the Picts were 'well-formed, goodlooking' seems to contradict the view, expressed by him, that they were pygmies and uglylooking (pygmäenhaft und eher häßlich)! In view of this, the aforementioned derivation of
'figured, tattooed people' as a British preserve would also need to be treated with caution.
8
The Picts are attested in historical sources as follows: Pettar, Pettir (Old Norse), Pehtas, Pihtas, Pyhtas, Peohtas, Piohtas
(Old English), Pecht (Old Scots), Peith-wyr (Welsh). The name is also contained in the Pentland Firth (ON Petlandsfjorðr).
The Ravenna Cosmography of ca. 700+ AD has Pexa, which, though listed as the name of a fort on the Antonine Wall, may
stand for *Pectia ‘Pictland’. The cosmographer’s source for northern Britain is believed to be a Severan modernisation
(208-211 AD) of an official military map of Flavian times (69-96 AD), the information for which was mostly gathered
during Agricola’s campaugns (77-83 AD). If so, this would make Pexa (< *Pectia) the earliest reference for the Picts and
Pictland (cf. Nicolaisen 1996: 5).
9
Inlinunt certe aliis aliae faciem in populis barbarorum feminae, maresque etiam apud Dacos et Sarmatas corpora sua
inscribunt (Pliny Nat. Hist. XXII, 2, quoted after Birkhan 2007:32, fn. 27).
7
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
1.4.3. Ériu / Íriu
Although to date a Celtic provenance for the name has been proposed, nevertheless there is no
unity among Celtic scholars on any linguistic interpretation.
Pokorny’s (1925: 202) suggests as a meaning for Ériu ‘a raised piece of land free from water
between swamps, an island’ (see above), or (1959: 1161) ‘Hügel, Insel [‘hill, island’]’:
air. ferenn (*uereno-) ‚Gürtel’, fertae (mir. fert) ‚Grabhügel’ (mit Steinen verschlossen) = ags. weorð
[‚Hof, Wirtschaft’], air. feronn. ferann (*uerono-) ‚Land, Acker’ (wohl ‚*umhegt’); mcymr. gwerthyr
‚Festung’ (*uertro-; vgl. [...] air. vartra- [‘Schutzdamm, Deich’]); hierher wohl air. Ériu, Gen. Érenn,
cymr. Iwerddon ‚Irland’ als *epi-ueriō, Gen. -ionos ‚Hügel, Insel’ (vgl. ahd. werid) nach Pokorny KZ.
47, 233, ZcP. 15, 197ff. (Pokorny 1959: 1161).
These seem somewhat curious in an archipelago that is the British Isles which contains a large
number of islands, a point also noted by Vennemann (1998a: 463). In addition, Pokorny’s
(1916: 233) view that Ériu goes back to PIE *uer-, ueru- urū ‘shut, protect, save’, interpreting
this in the context of Ireland’s geography as a large plain surrounded by mountains on the
edge, seems somewhat strained:
Dazu kommt noch, dass Irland eine weite Ebene darstellt, die ringsumher an den Rändern von Bergen
eingeschlossen ist [...]. (Pokorny 1925: 202).
In addition to Pokorny’s etymology Rhŷs (1873-75), Holder (1904), and latterly Schrijver
(1995) and de Bernardo-Stempel (2000) associate the name for Ireland with Skt. pīvarī ‘fat’
(f.) interpreting it as ‘the fat, fertile place’:
W PN Iwerydd, cf. OIr. Ériu, íriu ‘earth’ < *eiuVr-iiū or rather *īuVr-iiū (< PIE *piHuer-, cf. Skt. pīvarī
‘fat’ (f)); a PCl. or PIE origin of the formation is uncertain. If the connection with Skt. pīvarī is correct,
Iwerydd may well be a derivation in *-ōn > PCl. *-ū based on the feminine stem *piHuer-ih2-. [...]
(Schrijver 1995: 288).
Nevertheless, as can be seen, Schrijver himself is not 100% certain about a PCelt. or PIE
provenance for the name Ériu and has some doubts about the connection with pīvarī, thus
casting doubt on a Celtic or even Indo-European provenance for Ériu / Íriu. Porkorny in 1925
also had similar doubts as to the Celticity of Ériu when he noted:
[...] vorausgesetzt dass Ériu kein vorkeltischer Name ist [...] (Pokorny 1925: 202).
Finally, Graham Isaac (2006: 1-4), as we have seen, proposes two solutions for the
interpretation of Ériu: 1. ‘place on, upon, at by near the water, stream’, 2. ‘place par excellence on which it rains’. Both proposals suggest that Ireland is blessed with a lot of water and
rain, implying that other islands in the area, e.g. Britain, are not so endowed, i.e. that the
distinction between the two is considerable, and therefore noticeable to warrant a name of that
sort. However, anyone familiar with the climate of both Britain and Ireland today would
recognise that each is as much inundated with rain, water, etc, as the other. The climate seems
to have been similar in antiquity, as commented on (for Britain) by the Greek geographer
Strabo (64BC - ca.21AD) (Geog. IV, 5, 2):
ἔστι δ' ἡ πλείστη τῆς νήσου πεδιὰς καὶ κατάδρυµος [...] ἔποµβροι δ'εἰσὶν οἱ ἀέρες µᾶλλον ἢ νιφετώδεις;
ἐν δὲ ταῖς αἰθρίαις ὁµίχλη κατέχει πολὺν χρόνον, ὥστε δι' ἡµερας ὅλης ἐπὶ τρεῖς µόνον ἢ τέτταρας ὥρας
τὰς περὶ τὴν µεσηµβρίαν ὁρᾶσθαι τὸν ἥλιον [...] (Strabo Geog. IV, 5, 2)
Most of the island is flat and overgrown with forests, although many of the districts are hilly [...]. Their
weather is more rainy than snowy; and on the days of clear sky fog prevails so long a time that
8
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
throughout a whole day the sun is to be seen for only about three or four hours round about midday (...)
(Loeb: Jones).
Isaac’s suggested interpretations for Ériu seem unrealistic and therefore unlikely.
2. Present proposals
Given the aforementioned difficulties with the various names, perhaps we should pause for a
moment and look at the situation afresh.
2.1. Albiōn
With regard to Albiōn let us return to the basic meaning of *albho- ‘white’. The earlier
interpretation, as noted by Holder (1896: 83), that the name Albion refers to the coastal chalk
cliffs perhaps needs some slight modification. It is my view that ‘white’ here does not refer to
chalk cliffs, but to the white metal (see Pokorny below) available there, namely tin (Lat.
plumbum album 'white lead'),10 mined in south-west Britain, mainly in Cornwall, i.e. that
Albiōn would mean ‘white metal land, white tin-land’.11 If so, the name would seem to have
been applied by early Indo-European visitors to Britain whose main interest was securing tin
for the making of bronze artefacts, e.g. weapons, jewellery, etc. Pokorny (1959: 31) provides
us with a parallel use of this term, albeit in a by-form, for ‘tin’, namely:
Zum Ablaut: neben *albho-s scheint eine zweisilbige Wzf. vorzuliegen in gr. αλωφός [...]. Da ferner
-bho- ein in Farbenbezeichnungen häufiges Suffix ist (z.B. lat. galbus, lit. raības ‚bunt’ neben raīnas
[...]), ist *albhos auf die einsilbige Wz. *al- beziehbar und dürfte andrerseits αλωφός [...] zu lit. aĨvas
‚Zinn’ (‚weißes Metal’), apr. alwis ‚Blei’, russ. όlovo ‚Zinn’ (aus idg. *al uo-? [...]) in einem ähnlichen
Verhältnis stehen [...] (Pokorny 1959: 31).
This, if correct, would suggest that the application of Albiōn to mean ‘white metal land, white
tin land’, given the aforementioned parallels in eastern Indo-European languages, was early.
In this context, W. F. O'Brien (1990: 289) notes the connections between south-west Britain
and Munster (Ireland) and Brittany ca. 1700-1500 BC, with the Trenovissick and Carnon
bronze axes providing some evidence for contact between Munster-based Stage 6 workshops
and Cornish alluvial tin sources. Long distance procurement of tin along the Munster-Cornish-Breton axis may explain the distribution of Irish-influenced metalwork on the Continent
auring this period (O'Brien ibid.). These connections would be later continued by early IndoEuropean settlers (hence the name Albiōn), then by others, e.g. Phoenicians / Carthaginians,
Greeks, Gauls and Romans, etc. It was evidently Britain's mineral resources that prompted the
Roman invasion of 43 AD (cf. Jones & Mattingly 2002: 179-232).12
10
According to SOED (s.v. tin), tin is a "silvery lustrous malleable metal which is a chemical element, atomic no. 50, occurs
chiefly in the mineral cassiterite, resists atmospheric corrosion, and is used in making alloys (e.g. bronze, pewter) and tin
plate." 'Silvery lustrous' to the ordinary eye can be interpreted as 'white'.
11
A similar explanation may also apply to the name Belerion (Βελέριον Diodorus Siculus V, 21; PNRB 266; applied to
modern West-Cornwall), namely, 'shining metal land, tin land'. The current view as expressed in PNRB (266) associates
this name with the Celtic god Belenos (< PIE *bhele- 'shine') and offers 'a beacon' as a possible (but unsatisfactory) explanation.
12
The minerals mined in Britain during the Roman period (using present-day nomenclature here for convenience) include
gold (West Wales & Southwest & North Scotland), silver (Southwest England), lead (Northern & Southwest England,
Central Wales), copper (Southern Scotland, Northern England, North Wales, Southwest England), zinc (Northern &
Western England), tin (Southwest England), iron (Northeast, Northwest, Southwest & Southeast England), coal (England
[possibly also Wales and Scotland, though not specifically stated]). Though earlier mining, particularly tin mining, activity
in Britain was in the hands of the Phoenicians (cf. Diodorus Siculus above), the Romans exploited Britains's mineral
9
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
The name Albiōn in the course of time would become current for the whole island of Britain,
irrespective of whether its original meaning was retained or not, i.e. Albiōnes would probably
mean 'dwellers of (the land of) Albion, rather than 'tin people'. Later Albiōn developed into
W. elfydd with the meaning ‘earth, world’.
2.2. Prydyn (Prydan) / Prydein (Prydain)
Rather than that *Pritanī / *Pritenī mean ‘land of the figured or tattooed people’, it is suggested, in the context of Albiōn, that Prydyn / Prydein also means ‘tin-land’. This was first
proposed by Vennemann (1998a: 467), based on the (Hamito-Semitic13) form pretan seemingly found in a Demotic manuscript of early first century BC date:
[...] Der älteste Namenshinweis ist jedoch in einem demot[ischen] Pap[yrus] des frühen 1. Jt. v. Chr. zu
finden. Hier ist pretan der Name für Zinn, das damals vermutlich von Cornwall nach Äg[ypten]
eingeführt wurde (Der Kleine Pauly s.v. Britannia; also quoted in Vennemann 1998a: 467).
In Schulten (1950: 11) the name is described as Coptic and given as πίθραν (pithran) 'tin'.14 If
this suggestion is correct, then this name would likely have been bestowed by Phoenician
merchants during the 7th-6th centuries BC and may possibly be a translation of Albiōn. Nothing
more is known about the aforementioned Demotic manuscript, however.
That tin was mined in the Cornwall area is detailed by Greek writers. Diodorus Siculus (Hist.
V, 22), writing ca. 30 BC, notes:
[...], νῦν δὲ περὶ τοῦ κατ' αὐτὴν φυοµένου καττιτέρου διέξιµεν. τῆς γὰρ Βρεττανικῆς κατὰ τὸ ἀκρωτήριον
τὸ καλούµενον Βελέριον οἱ κατοικοῦντες φιλόξενοι [...]. οὗτοι τὸν καττίτερον κατασκευάζουσι φιλοτέχνως εργαζόµενοι τὴν φέρουσαν αὐτὸν γῆν [...]. ἀποτυποῦντες δ' εἰς ἀστραγάλων ῥυθµοὺς κοµίζουσιν
εἴς τινα νῆσον προκειµένην µὲν τῆς Βρεττανικῆς, ὀνοµαζοµένην δὲ Ἴκτιν; κατὰ γὰρ τὰς ἀµπώτεις ἀναξηραινοµένου τοῦ µεταξὺ τόπου ταῖς ἁµάξαις εἰς ταύτην κοµίζουσι δαψιλῆ τὸν καττίτερον [...]. ἐντεῦθεν
δ' οἱ ἔµποροι παρὰ τῶν ἐγχωρίων ὠνοῦνται καὶ διακοµίζουσιν εἰς τὴν Γαλατίαν [...] (Diodorus Siculus,
Hist. V, 22).
('..., and at this time we shall discuss the tin which the island [of Britain] produces. The inhabitants of
Britain who dwell about the the promontory known as Belerium [West Cornwall] are especially hospitable to strangers (...). They it is who work the tin, treating the bed which bears it in an ingenious manner
(...). Then they work the tin into pieces the size of knuckle-bones and convey it to an island which lies off
Britain and is called Ictis;15 for at the time of ebb-tide the space between this island and the mainaland
becomes dry and they can take the tin in large quantities over to the island on their wagons (...). On the
island [of Ictis] the merchants purchase the tin of the natives and carry it from there across the Strait to
Galatia (Loeb: Oldfather).
That this sort of name, also derived from business activity, was also in being in this area
around that time is found in the Greek name Kassiterides (Gr. Κασσιτερίδες νήσοι ‘tinislands’ (referring to the Isles of Scilly) from κασσιτέρος ‘tin’ (etymology unknown16), Lat.
loanword casseritum ‘tin’) also mentioned in Diodorus Siculus (Hist. V, 38, 4-5):
wealth more systematically. For fuller details see Jones & Mattingly (2002: 179-232 (map p. 179)).
i.e. Mediterranean Hamito-Semitic (cf. Gensler 1993: 426).
14
K. Sethe in Schulten (1950: 11, fn. 2) derives the Coptic name for tin from the name Britain [Prydan], though without
explanation. For bronze and copper SOED derives the word bronze as probably from Persian Birinj 'brass' (SOED s.v.
bronze) and copper from Latin cyprium '(metal of) Cyprus' (SOED s.v. copper).
15
i.e. Vectis 'Isle of Wight' (PNRB 487-88). The Isle of Wight, according to Coates (1988a: 9), was known to have been some
sort of staging post for the export of tin in antiquity.
16
For a discussion on the possible provenance of kassiteros see Schulter (1950: 10-11).
13
10
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
ὑπεράνω γὰρ τῆς τῶν Λυσιτανῶν χώρας ἔστι µέταλλα πολλὰ τοῦ καττιτέρου, καὶ κατὰ τὰς προκειµένας
τῆς Ἰβηρίας ἐν τῳ ωκεανῳ νησῖδας τὰς ἀπο τοῦ συµβεβηκοτος Καττιτερίδας ὠνοµασµένας. πολυς δὲ καὶ
ἐκ τῆς Βρεττανικῆς νήσου διακοµίζεται πρὸς τὴν κατ' αντικρὺ κειµένην Γαλατίαν, και δι τῆς µεσογείου
Κελτικῆς ἐφ' ἵππων ὑπὸ τῶν ἐµπόρων ἄγεται παρὰ τε τοὺς Μασσαλιώτας καὶ εἰς την ὀνοµαζοµένην
πόλιν Ναρβῶνα. (Diodorus Siculus Hist. V, 38, 4-5).
('For there are many mines of tin in the country above Lusitania and on the islets which lie off Iberia in
the ocean and are called because of that fact the Cassiterides. And tin is brought in large quantities also
from the island of Britain to the opposite Gaul, where it is taken by merchants on horses through the
interior of Celtica both to the Massalians and to the city of Narbo, as it is called.') (Loeb: Oldfather).
A similar picture is given by Strabo (Geog. 2, 120):
τούτοις δὲ τὰ ἑσπέρια τῆς Βρεττανικῆς ἀντίκεινται πρὸς ἄρκτον, ὁµοίως δὲ καὶ ταῖς Ἀρτάβροις
ἀντίκεινται πρὸς ἀρκτον αἱ Καττιτερίδες καλούµεναι νῆσοι πελάγιαι κατὰ τὸ Βρεττανικόν πως κλίµα
ἱδρυµέναι (Strabo Geog. II, 5, 15).
('The westerly parts of Britain lie opposite these headlands towards the north; and in like manner the
islands called Cassiterides, situated in the open sea approximately in the latitude of Bitain, lie opposite to,
and north of, the Artabrians') (Loeb: Jones).
Pliny (Nat. Hist. VII, 197) mentions that a certain Midacritus (i.e. Μειδόκριτος ca. 575 BC)
ex Cassiteride insula primus adportavit (Pliny Nat. Hist. VII, 197)
('first imported [tin] from the island of Cassiteris'17) (GB).
Again Strabo (Geog. III, 5, 11), who also mentions Phoenician activity in the area:
Αἱ δὲ Καττιτερίδες δέκα µέν εἰσι, κεῖνται δ' ἐγγὺς ἀλλήλων, πρὸς ἄρκτον ἀπὸ τοῦ τῶν Ἀρτάβρων λιµένος
πελάγιαι; µία δ' αὐτῶν ἔρηµός ἐστι, τὰς δ' ἄλλας οἰκοῦσιν ἄνθρωποι µελάγχλαινοι [...]. µέταλλα δὲ
ἔχοντες καττιτέρου καὶ µολύβδου κέραµον ἀντὶ τούτων καὶ τῶν δερµάτων διαλλάττονται καὶ ἅλας καὶ
χαλκώµατα πρὸς τοὺς ἐµπόρους. πρότερον µὲν οὖν Φοίνικες µόνοι τῆν ἐµπορίαν ἔστελλον ταύτην ἐκ τῶν
Γαδείων [...] (Strabo Geog. III, 5, 11).
('The Cassiterides are ten (islands) in number, and they lie near each other in the high sea to the north of
the port of the Artabrians. One of them is desert, but the rest are inhabited (...). As they have mines of tin
and lead, they give these metals and the hides from their cattle to the sea-traders, in exchange for pottery,
salt and copper utensils. Now in former times it was the Phoenicians alone who carried on this commerce
(that is, from Gades [Cadiz]) (...)') (Loeb: Jones).18
That the Phoenicians were active in the area of Britain (and by implication Ireland), as
Pokorny (1953-54: 99) also notes, is found in reports, almost certainly available to the Greek
writer Marinos of Tyre (ca. 100 AD), mentioning the voyages of discovery of the Carthaginian Admiral Himilco19 who, after the destruction of Tartessos20 ca. 500 BC, was seemingly
sent northwards to reconnoitre the route to the tin deposits available in Brittany and Cornwall.
Details are given by Avienus in his Ora Maritima li. 108-119):
17
18
19
20
The insula Cassiteris woudl refer to the island of Britain, as, according to Pokorny (1953-54: 98), Pliny identifies the
Kassiterides with the British Isles.
Indirect reference to such activity may be found in the Old Testament. The prophet Ezekiel (27, 3), in praising the Phoenicians of Tyros (Tyre), states: “O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many
isles [...]”; (27, 12): “Tarshish [i.e. Tartessos] was thy [i.e. Tyre’s] merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of
riches; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs”; (27, 25) ”The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy
market: and thou wast replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of the seas”.
Himilco's exploits find mention in Rufus Festus Avienus (fl. 2nd half of the 4th cent. AD) Ora Maritima (ca. 400AD); cf.
Murphy 1977, li.114-129, again 380-389 and 412-415, and KP II: 1151-52. The Ora Maritima in essence takes as its
model a single periplus (sailors' manual) of 6th cent. BC date (KP II: 1151), quoting Schulten 1922.
According to Schulten (1950:12, 44f.), Tartessos was already in being by 1100 BC, seemingly established by the Phoenicians of Tyre, itself founded ca. 1200 BC. After the fall of Tyre ca. 600 BC the Tartessos market was then taken over by
Greeks from Phocaea in Asia Minor until the destruction of Tartessos ca. 500 BC.
11
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
ast hinc duobus in sacram, sic insulam / dixere prisci, solibus cursus rati est. / haec inter undas multa[m] caespitem iacet, / eamque late gens Hiernorum colit. / propinqua rursus insula Albionum patet. /
Tartes(s)iisque in terminos Oestrumnidum / negotiandi mos erat. Carthaginis / etiam coloni[s] et vulgus
inter Herculis / agitans columnas haec ad[h]ibant aequora, / quae Himilco Poenus mensibus vix quattuor, / ut ipse semet re[m] probasse re(t)ulit / enavigantem, posse transmitti adserit. / [...] (Avienus Ora
Maritima, li. 108-119).
('But from here (the Oestrymnides islands, by Brittany), there is a two-day journey for a ship to the Holy
Island (Ireland) - thus the ancients called it. This island, large in extent of land, lies between the waves.
The race of Hierni inhabits it far and wide. Again, the island of the Albiones [Britain] lies near, and the
Tartessians were accustomed to carry on business to the ends of the Oestrymnides. Colonists of Carthage,
too, and the common folk living around the Pillars of Hercules came to these seas. Himilco of Carthage
reported that he himself had investigated the matter on a voyage, and he asserts that it can scarcely be
crossed in four months') (Murphy).
From that point onwards the Carthaginians seemingly controlled the trade with Brittany and
Britain and Ireland. This is perhaps a convenient story to explain Carthaginian (Phoenician)
presence in the area of Brittany and Cornwall,21 but nevertheless it reinforces the view found
in other reports noted above of Phoenician (trade) presence in the area of Britain and Ireland.
2.3. Ériu / Íriu
Likewise, as copper mining in Ireland was seemingly also “big business” (O’Brien 1987,
1990, Harbison 1988: 113-115),22 Vennemann’s suggestion (1998a: 465) that Ériu / Íriu
derives also from Hamito-Semitic meaning ‘copper island’ would be appropriate in this
context. Copper, as is well known, is a necessary ingredient, along with tin, for the production
of bronze.23 The Proto-Semitic form, as outlined by Vennemann (ibid.), viz. *’iy + we-ri’um,
*iy weri’im, would give **íriu in Goidelic (also Isaac 2006: 1):
Meiner Ansicht nach ist der alte Name Irlands gebildet aus den paläosemitischen Etyma von hebr. ‚-y‚Insel’ und akkad. werûm, erû, assyrisch oft eriu(m) ‚Kupfer, Bronze’ weri’um (vergleiche „weri’u(m)
ass[yrisch]“). Aus einem nach ursemitischem Schema gebildeten paläosemitischen *’y-wr’(m) ‚KupferInsel’, konstruiert und vokalisiert als *’iy + we-ri’um, *iy weri’im (Vennemann 1998a: 465).24
However, as we have seen, the name Íriu in the minds of the people of Ireland was evidently
regarded as a doublet of Ériu (O’Rahilly 1943: 10). In this context Íriu would therefore mean
‘Ireland’, and not ‘land’, etc.
Eric Hamp (1983: 291) was not happy with the ‘doublet’ thesis, however:
21
22
23
24
In addition, indirect reference to such Phoenician activity may also be found in the Old Testament. The prophet Ezekiel
notes: (27, 3): "O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many isles [...]", (27,
12): "Tarshish [i.e. Tartessos] was thy [i.e. Tyre's] merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches; with silver,
iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs", (27, 25): "The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy market: and thou wast
replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of the seas (Ezekiel 27, 3; 27, 12; 27, 25). The Book of Ezekiel was
seemingly written by one of the Jewish exiles in Babylon after the taking of Jeruslaem by Nebuchadnezzar in 587 BC. The
period of exile in Babylon extnded from 586 to 538 BC (cf. Finkelstein & Silberman 2002: 297, 2006: 293).
The amount of copper produced in the Mount Gabriel area of south-west Cork, Ire-land, during the Early Bronze Age
seems to have been considerable for the time (some 370 tonnes), dating from ca. 1700-1500 BC O’Brien 1987: 68). Much
of it was evidently exported (Harbison 1988: 114-115, O’Brien 1990: 269-290).
According to SOED (s.v. bronze) bronze is described as a "brown alloy of copper with up to one-third tin, often with small
amounts of other metals."
The suggestion of a Hamito-Semitic (or at least a non-Indogermanic) provenance for the names for Britain and Ireland
(namely, Prydyn / Prydein and Ériu / Íriu) would not be out of place in this area. Richard Coates (1988a: 12), supported by
Theo Vennemann (1998b: 39), has suggested a Hamito-Semitic etymon for the name Solent and Vennemann (1998b: 4042) etyma for both Solent and the Isles of Scilly. For additional place-names in and around Britain and Ireland which
Vennemann believes to be of non-Indo-European origin see Vennemann 1998b.
12
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
[...] Rachel Bromwich adduces T. F. O’Rahilly’s claim of a doublet relation for OIr. íriu, gen. írenn
‘land’ and Ériu. This is impossible within Irish, and because Welsh Iwerddon must be related to Ériu it
cannot be placed in relation with íriu. This makes the last word particularly isolated and ambiguous
(Hamp 1983: 291).
Nevertheless, as we have seen, Isaac (2006: 3) has adduced that Iwerddon came to dominate
for Ériu ‘Ireland’ in place of Ywerddon, i.e. that Iwerddon originally equated with Íriu.
Though Ériu and Íriu may not be reconciled phonologically, as Hamp notes, nevertheless,
what is important to bear in mind here are not the linguistics of the matter, but how these
names were perceived by the people of Ireland who made use of them. Namely, that both
were interchangeable in the context of Ireland and as such both meant ‘Ireland’.
The suggestion of a Hamito-Semitic (or at least a non-Indo-European) provenance for the
names for Britain and Ireland (namely, Prydyn / Prydein and Ériu / Íriu) would not be out of
place in this area. Richard Coates (1988a: 12), for example, supported by Theo Vennemann
(1998b: 39), has suggested a Hamito-Semitic etymon for the name Solent (*s-l-'m ti'- giving
Sol'im t'- or Sol'im ty- plus determiner 'the prominent cliffs')25 and Vennemann (1998b: 40-42)
has suggested etyma for both Solent and the Isles of Scilly (*s-l-'-m-A mag-im (*Sul'imA
mag-im) 'the (numerous) rocks, cliffs').26
3. Conclusion
In considering the place-names Albion, Prydyn (Prydan) / Prydein (Prydain) and Ériu / Íriu
the following points can be made:
1. It is here proposed that Albiōn 'whiteland' refers not to the white chalk cliffs but to the tinmines in south-west Britain, and if so would mean 'white metal land, tin land', as probably
also the name Belerion, and that the names were likely applied by early Indo-European
visitors to Britain (ca. 900 BC)27 to procure tin, thereby continuing a long tradition going
back to ca. 1700-1500 BC, if not before.
2. In the same tradition Prydyn (Prydan) / Prydein (Prydain) is held to be a name of HamitoSemitic origin, meaning 'tin land' and applied probably by Phoenician merchants ca.- 8th6th centuries BC.
3. Likewise Ériu / Íriu is also regarded as of Hamito-Semitic provenance meaning 'copper
island' and also probably applied by Phoenician traders at around the same time.
The main advantage of this solution, if found acceptable, is perhaps its simplicity, as all
the names (viz. Albiōn, Prydain, Ériu) are linked by a common factor, namely, that of
metal procurement.
4. The acquisition of copper from Ireland and tin from south-west Britain and Brittany seemingly has a long history. As we have seen, the amount of copper produced in the Mount
Gabriel area of south-west Cork, Ireland, during the Early Bronze Age seems to have been
considerable for the time (some 370 tons), dating from ca. 1700-1500 BC. Much of it was
evidently exported. As noted above, we would also need to bear in mind the connections at
this time with south-west Britain and Brittany. These connections seem to have been con-
25
26
27
Apparently first applied to the 'Needles' cliffs on the western end of the Isle of Wight, then later to the stretch of water
between the Isle of Wight and Britain (cf. Vennemann 1998b: 38-40).
For additional place-names around Britain and Ireland which Vennemann believes to be of non-Indo-European origin, see
Vennemann (1998b); see now also Coates 2012.
This period, according to Adams (1980: 50), saw the introduction of weapons and tools of a rather different kind from
those of earlier settlers, suggesting a different type of incomer.
13
The Names for Britain and Ireland revisited
tinued into our era by early Indo-Europeans, then by Phoenicians / Carthaginians, Greeks,
Gauls and Romans, etc.
5. It is not necessary for there to have been any (size of) Hamito-Semitic speaking population
either in Britain or in Ireland for the names Prydyn / Prydein, Ériu / Íriu to be applied.
These names would likely be the "trade-names" current in the Mediterranean area among
merchants, etc., having a vested business interest in and around Britain and Ireland and
pass accordingly into Greek and Latin as and when the need arose.
6. We would also need to bear in mind that names deriving from economic activity exist in
our own time as well. We only need to think of the "Gold Coast" and "Ivory Coast" in
West Africa, the "Pepper Coast" in the western part of Guinea in West Africa, and the
"Spice Islands" in Indonesia, to name but a few.28
7. Many names for territories are applied by outsiders; the name America, for instance, is a
prime example, without going any further through the alphabet.
8. We have noted that the traditional explanations of the names for Britain and Ireland within
a Celtic framework are not all that satisfactory. A possible Hamito-Semitic (or at least
non-Indo-European) provenance of such names as Solent and (the Isles of) Scilly, as we
have seen, would lend support to a possible non-Indo-European origin also for the names
for Britain and Ireland. In view of this, we may very well in future have to seek solutions
outside the world of Celtic and Indo-European to establish the provenance of other names
within and around the islands of Britain and Ireland.29
Abbreviations
ags. - angelsächsisch.
ahd. - althochdeutsch.
air. - altirisch.
apr. - altpreußisch.
BG - Bellum Gallicum (Caesar).
Bret. - Breton.
Celt. - Celtic.
cy./cymr. - cymrisch.
EpGk. - Epic Greek.
gall./Gaul. - gallisch/Gaulish.
germ. - germanisch.
Gk/griech. - Greek/griechisch.
idg. - indogermanisch.
IEW - Indogermanisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch
(Pokorny 1959).
ital. - italisch.
kelt. - keltisch.
KP - Der kleine Pauly.
KZ - Kuhns Zeitschrift: Zeitschrift für vergleichende
Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der indogermanischen
Sprachen
IE - Indo-European.
ir./Ir. - irisch/Irish.
Lat./lat. - Latin/lateinisch.
lig. - ligurisch
lit. - litauisch.
LIV - Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben (Rix 2001).
LN(N) - Location Name(s).
mcymr. - mittelcymrisch.
mir/Mid. Ir. - mittelirisch/Middle Irish.
Mod Ir. - Modern Irish.
MW - Middle Welsh.
nhd. - neuhochdeutsch.
OIr. - Old Irish.
OW - Old Welsh.
PCelt./Pcelt/PCl. - Proto-Celtic.
PIE - Proto-Indo-European.
PN - Place-Name.
PNRB - Place-Names of Roman Britain (Rivet & Smith 1979).
russ. - russisch.
Skt. - Sanskrit.
SOED - Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 1993.
urir. - uririsch.
urkelt. - urkeltisch
W - Welsh.
ZCP - Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie.
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