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E 0806 SHIELD
The word " shield " is of
Germanic origin .
H 0914 ט ל ש
Concept of root : shield
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Hebrew word
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pronunciation
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English meanings
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ט ל ש
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sheleth
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shield
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Related English words
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shield
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Comparison between European words and
Hebrew
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Languages
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Words
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Pronunciation
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English meanings
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Similarity in roots
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Hebrew
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ט ל ש
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sheleth
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shield
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sh . l . th
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English
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shield
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shield
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sh . l d
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German
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Schild
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shìlt
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shield
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sh . l t
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Proto-Semitic *SHELETH --- *SKĬLD- Proto-Germanic < *SKĬLT Indo-European
The similarity is clear . Sisters of English "shield" are found in other Germanic languages in Europe. The common origin is quite probable, but only between Hebrew and Germanic. Other Indo-European languages have words for shield that do not have the L. We quote Latin "scutum", Russian "щит , shtshìt" and Old Irish "sciath".
This is interesting and important. Very many times one finds a similarity between Semitic and Germanic that is not or less clearly present between Semitic and other Indo-European branches. Does this give one of many indications that there has not been a clear and immediate separation at one moment in history between Indo European and Semitic? Instead an articulated drifting apart may have caused further common cultural-economic and therewith linguistic developments between some languages of the main groups. This is today in the reign of hypothesis, but further research might lead to interesting confirming results.
As things stand, the Latin, Celtic and Slavic languages show to be related in this root for "shield".
Note:
- Hebrew uses an identical root "SH L TH" for the concept of " power, domination, despotism". There is no known clear indication that the two roots are related .
In modern language the word "sheleth" is used to say "signboard" or "slate". This has been done on the example of modern European languages that use "Schild" and its sisters to this end as well.
One might just fantasize that "roadsigns " and the like are decided on and placed by the authorities, those who have power and therefore are called "shelatim", related to the just mentioned second root "SH L TH". But the word is not found in the Bible with any such meaning and it is a neo-logism.
Note:
- Proto-Semitic. This root with this message is seen in Akkadian "shalthu = shield "and may well have been in use in Proto-Semitic "* ש ל ט , SH L TH". Then "SH L TH" in the sense of " to rule, be master of, have dominion" is found in various Semitic tongues. In the comparison we maintained the two vowels " E " as found in the Hebrew noun.
Note:
- Proto-Germanic. The words for "shield" are mostly pronounced with "SH" as the first consonant, also in Scandinavian languages with a spelling "SKJ" or one with "SK" in front of a vowel "Ŏ" or "Ö". But Old Saxon and Old Frisian had "SK" and Dutch "SGH ( spelled SCH)".
The final couple of consonants is normally in older as well as in newer tongues "LD", but in Old and Middle High German, Middle Low German and even Middle Dutch we encounter "LT" in "schilt, scilt" besides "LD" in "schilde". The "LT" can be seen as a separate development, the result of which disappeared again as both German and Dutch today have "schild".
The vowel in between is different in Scandinavian, with Norwegian and Danish "skjold" and Swedish "sköld". But then one finds Old Norse "skjold-r" with the following declension : "skjaldar, skildi, skjaldi, skildir, skjoldu" . Thus Proto-Germanic probably had "*SK I LD-" and used various other vowels in declensions.
Note:
- Indo-European. Between Germanic and Semitic there is this rather interesting similarity "SH L T(H)", but if we then, as we must, shift to Indo-European, we lose that central consonant " L ". An exception can perhaps be seen in Lithuanian, where a word "skiltis" says "disc, board". These indeed are also seen as the original meanings of the Germanic words for "shield".
In the other groups we find words without the L.
Old Indian has "khetha", without the initial " S ", but with the "TH" as in Hebrew.
Latin "scutum" has a suffix "-um" for the shaping of a noun. It is improbable that "scutum" comes from "cutis = skin, leather" especially as this indicates basically the softer skin.
Slavic has a hypothesis of "shtshītj", with a Old Church Slavonic "shtītj" and a Russian "щит, shtshīt.
Baltic has hypotheses of "*skait-" and "*skid-". Old Prussian has "scaytan".
Celtic shows Old Irish "scīath" and Old Breton "scoit".
Existing hypotheses hesitate between a.o. "(s)keit-" and "skheid-". We cannot exclude an original central " L ", that was lost in all groups but Germanic : "*SK Ĭ LT-". In case the Lithuanian word "skiltis" would have been in some way loaned from Germanic, there would again be frequent situation of Germanic being nearer to Semitic than all other branches of Indo-European.
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| Created: Tuesday 6 November 2007 at 22.30.54 Updated: 02/01/2013 at 14.48.13 |
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