Dave Postles wrote:
>The book that Christopher might have been thinking of is possibly the erudite
Marie-Therese Morlet, _Les noms de personne sur le territoire de l'ancienne
Gaule du vie au xiie siecle_, of which the first 2 vols appeared in 1968 and
1972 (the 3rd in 1985).
Yep.
Was right on the tip of my tounge.
>This is a rare book and I don't have access to it.
Scarce, rather than rare I'd say, professionally speaking.
I.U.'s copy (of vols. 1 & 2 only) was, mirabile dictu, on the shelf (we don't
have the 1991 edition of her _Dictionnaire_, however, which I take to be
indicitative of *its* rarity);
and vol. I (germanique & gallo-germanique origins) offers at least one entry,
which I, being so challenged, am having some trouble reconciling with the
lady's final word on the subject which you quote:
>p. 525 'Hodierne n. de personne fem. d'origine germ. Odigerna (-od richesse;
-gern desireux). [On releve dans le Cartul. de l'Hotel Dieu de Paris
Odierne/Hodierne xiiie s. <*Audigerna]. [Her square parenthesis]
>From vol. I, p. 108: "GERN-: Cet element que nous avons releve seulement dans
deux composes se rattache au got. _garins_ v. h. a. _ge"rn_, v. a. _georn_
ardent, ze'le'.
The two names with this element: Gernhardus and Gernildis.
So, when she says "only two" here she means "there are only two names in which
this element is found as a *prototheme*" and buries the "deuterothematic"
(wonderful, multi-syllabic word, BTW) usages in some other main entry. (?)
Which one finds by.....knowing where to look, I suppose.
My trying to use this book is somewhat like a pearl-tossed swine trying
to make a cow's ear out of a silk purse, I'm afraid:
I'll be jiggered if I can find *any* entries for "Hodierna"; "Odigerna" (or
"-od", for that matter); or "Audigerna" (though there is: "AUD-: Cet element
se rattache au got. _audags_: felicite....v. sax _od_…"[p. 43]).
I feel a bit like the Wizard of Oz, in his flying baloon:
"Come back," said Dorothy.
"I can't," said the Wizard, "I don't know how it works."
An amazing resource, this book; but threading my way through the elements
(just "roots", to me) is, I'm now remembering, something of a challenge.
I'll keep looking, however, since I seem to have the only copy on the planet.
Best from here,
Christopher
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