E 0293          E L K

The word "elk" is of Germanic origin

H 0097            ל י א

Concept of root: deer

Hebrew word

pronunciation

English meanings

ל י א

ayyal

deer

Related English words

elk , Old English eolh

Comparison between European words and Hebrew

Languages

Words

Pronunciation

English meanings

Similarity in roots

Hebrew

ל י א

ayyal

deer

a . l

Greek

ελλος ; αλκη

ellos ;

      alkè

young deer ; elk

e l ;

e l k

Latin

alces

alkes

elk

e l k

English

elk

elk

e l k

Old English

eolh

elk

eo l h

Old High German

ëlho, ëlaho

èl(a)ho

elk

e l . h

German

Elch, Elentier

èlkh ;

élentìr

elk

e l kh;

e l . n

Middle Dutch

elen , ellen, eland

élen, èllen, élant

elk

e l . n

 

 

Proto-Semitic *AYYAL --- *EL-, *ELKH Indo-European

 

 

A comparison with entry GR 1134 (Hebrew 0096) shows a couple of things. First, the Greek word for "elk", certainly related to English, is identical to a word for "strength" . Secondly, the spellings of the two Hebrew words, respectively for "strength" and "deer" , are identical as well. Only the pronunciation varies from "eyal" to "ayyal". It is quite probable that both words have been developed or chosen as meaning " the strong one", on the basis of the root we find in entry GR 1134 (Hebrew 0096)

 

Thirdly, we find in Germanic words with or without a K-sound, all meaning "elk". They are certainly all related among them and with Hebrew. One may ask to what extent the Greeks and Jews knew the European elk ( moose ) from sight, but obvious would be that they called that animal a special deer, adding something to the name of the more common types of deer. According to some scholars the Achaei that founded Mycene, have come to Greece from far North.

 

A Greek "ellos" is a young deer. For the grown-ups one should look at entry number E 0292 (Hebrew 0030) , with the word "elaphos." that has an extended root with a P.

 

Note:
  • Hebrew uses this same root in the word "ayil", that says "ram". It is not clear if it was used as such for " elk ". The American "elk" is a close relative of the European deer, whereas the European elk is called a moose in America. One may wonder if the two names in Hebrew for a ram and a deer might be based on the idea of "strength", which would then have to be in contrast with the relative weakness of smaller animals, like the ram’s females or sheep and like goats.

 

Note:
  • Semitic tongues show the following forms, all with the meaning of "hart, stag, deer".

     

    Hebrewayal hart, stag, deerAleph Y L
    Aramaic ayel'à hart, stag, deerAleph Y L
    Ugaritic'ilhart, stag, deer Aleph Y L
    Arabic ayyil hart, stag, deer Aleph Y L
    Akkadian ayalu hart, stag, deer Aleph Y L
    Ethiopian hayyalhart, stag, deer H Y L

 

Note:
  • Proto-Semitic is seen with the same root present in Hebrew. It is important to note that the second consonant " Y" is not present in all Semitic languages. It lacks in Akkadian "alu = sheep" but is present in " ailu = ram" and in "ayalu = stag, deer ". Ugaritic had two versions . Consequently Proto-Semitic certainly had the version without "Y" : " *א ל , Aleph L", as found in Indo European. But probably there was already a development of a version with "Y" : "*א י ל , Aleph Y L ". This can be explained by the fact that the original root for " to be strong " was "*א ו ל , Aleph W L", pronounced " 'ol" or "'awwal". Such a root can develop the versions "'ayal" and " ayyal ", but also " 'al ".

 

Note:
  • Hebrew , Greek and Middle Dutch all use a root without K for a deer or elk.

 

Note:
  • Greek, Latin and Germanic. The K in Greek "alkè" finds a sister in Latin "alces", but also in Old High German and Anglo Saxon, that have an H after the L. This seems to indicate that both German and Greek, together with Latin , have developend the word for "elk" out of an earlier root that at the most had an aspired pronunciation, but not a full guttural. That brings it nearer to Hebrew, that never developed this guttural at all. The final O in Old High German is just a suffix for the shaping of a substantive.

 

Note:
  • Proto-Germanic In the older languages we find after the L an H and sometimes even this lacks. Old English "eolh" and even "eola", Old Saxon "elaho", Old High German "elahho" and Middle High German with both "elch" and "elhe" give a good indication of the development. Consequently Proto-Germanic was in the phase of developing "*E L H- " out of "*E L + A". There are Germanic words with an N, like Dutch "elen" and "eland" and German "Elentier" from "elen". An N is also found in Lithuanian "elnis > ellenis = deer", in which "-is" is a suffix, as well as in Russian "olen = deer". This is a separate development.

 

Note:
  • Indo-European. If the people who spoke Indo-European came from the Eurasian steppe, where they tamed the horse and bovines, they must have had a name for the "elk". We distinguish in the various languages two groups, that can be represented by the two German words "Elch" and "Elentier". As said in the previous note on Proto-Germanic, both have developed out of words for "deer, hart" that had as their most basic elements the combination "E + L", as shown in Entry E 0292 (Hebrew 0030) and the attached Table E 0292 (Hebrew 0030). Then we find in Lithuanian (Baltic) the sequence "ELN", that is also seen in Greek, together with "ELP".

     

    Indo European must have had the basic combination "E L-", for deerlike hoofed and horned animals and possibly also applied diversifications, especially for the big elk "E L KH-" , then "E L N-" for smaller or younger animals and "E L P" for taller species.

     

    We have no information in this regard from Old Indian or Avestan. And Slavic gives us for "elk" the Russian word " л о с ь, losh", together with its similar sister words from other Slavic languages developed by metathesis out of a hypothetical Slavic "*olkis", that would be in harmony with the thesis of an Indo European "E L KH-".

 

 

 

 
Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 27/09/2012 at 18.10.24