[tied] Re: Wuz

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Brian M. Scott" <BMScott@...>
wrote:

> At 6:48:21 PM on Monday, July 12, 2004, Miguel Carrasquer
> wrote:
>
> > On Mon, 12 Jul 2004 13:35:25 +0000, tgpedersen
> > <tgpedersen@...> wrote:
>
> >>Wassenaar would be a good candidate, I guess
>
> > Unlikely. Wass- < wasch- "wax, grow". Wassenaar is waxing
> > moon (not sure why the place is called that way).
>
> Künzel, Blok, & Verhoeff, Lexicon van nederlandse toponiemen
> tot 1200, have the citation <Philippus de Wasnare> 1200
> [1305] and say: wrsch. onl. _hare_ 'hoogte, heuvelrug' met
> bijv. nw. _wasn_ (< dativus singularis *_hwassan_) 'scherp'
> (vgl. oe. _hwass_).
>

Given Swedish vass 'reed(s)' (I think most Lexicon etc writers
wouldn't be aware that it existed), I suspect a cognate origin for
the Wass- of Wassenaar. "Reed cove" makes sense to me.¨There isn't
much of a sharp hoogte or heuvelrug near Wassenar.

Torsten