Re: [tied] Enclosed Places (was: The unexplained link between Greek

From: Piotr Gasiorowski
Message: 24514
Date: 2003-07-14

14-07-03 11:16, tgpedersen wrote:

> The development (in the non-verbal world)

What's the non-verbal world?

> was crossroads > temporary
> trading place > fenced temporary trading > fenced permanent trading
> place (also known as a town. In other words, the idea of 'town' is
> secondary to the idea of 'fenced-in area', not the other way around,
> as one is tempted to believe.

It's quite clear that in the cases of *garda- and *tu:na- the meaning
'enclosure' is older than 'town', and I don't think etymologists are
tempted to believe otherwise. But what's that about crossroads and
trading? Are you suggesting that *garda- (or any of its pre-Gmc. avatars
ever meant 'crossroads')?

Piotr