Joseph S Crary glosses Pliny:
> PLINI SECUNDI NATURALIS HISTORIAE
>
> LIBRI IV
> [Chapter 13]
>
> [Line 96]
> Incipit deinde clarior aperiri fama ab gente Inguaeonum, quae est
> prima in Germania mons Saevo ibi, inmensus nec Ripaeis iugis minor,
> inmanem ad Cimbrorum usque promunturium efficit sinum, qui Codanus
> vocatur.
>
> Rendering
> Now to clearly begin recounting [the] fame [of the] nations [of]
> Inguaeonum, which are the closest of Germania. All the way up to
> [the] promontory of Cimbrorum [the] facing tide has caused a bowl
> shaped (or rounded rim shaped) curve, that [is] called Codanus
> (theTail).
I gather this is where we pick up the term 'Ingvaeonic'.
Every time I delve into the history of Germanic (and English
particularly) you run up against the term Invaeonic; this seems a
synonym for Northwest Germanic; I recall 'Littoral' or the such also
being used, in distinction to 'Continental. There are some who want to
divide Germanic into North, East, West (Continental, High German) and
Northwest (Low German).
The idea seems to be that NW Germanic was cluster of dialects sharing
features of early North Germanic and early West Germanic.
Humph. I think there are too many over-qualified under-employed
historians of Germanic for our own good.
For the past few years, I've been comfortable using the terms West
Germanic, subdivided into High German and Low German, with English,
Dutch, Frisian and Plattdeutch being Low German.
Ok. What have I gotten wrong?