From: Bhrihskwobhloukstroy
Message: 69916
Date: 2012-07-31
>
> In researching Hercules Magusanus, I have found several writers citing a
> Celtic etymology published by Lauran Toorians, "Magusanus and the 'Old Lad':
> a Case of Germanicised Celtic" (NOWELE 42:13-28, 2003). The Latinized
> Magusanus (less often Mac-, generally in the dative HERCVLI MAGVSANO) is
> supposedly borrowed from an oxymoric adjective meaning 'young-old'. I have
> no access to this paper.
>
> The only applicable Celtic roots which I know of are *makWo- 'male
> descendant, son, young man' and *seno- 'old'. The only way I can arrive at
> the Germanic consonantism is by assuming a Q-Celtic compound accented on the
> connecting vowel (which is not in itself a problem), *makWo'-seno-, borrowed
> before the Lautverschiebung. The earliest known dedication to H.M. is the
> one from Ruimel, dated to the first half of the first century CE, well
> before Tacitus.
>
> In citing Germanic names, Tacitus (like other early authors) gives the
> connecting vowel of /o/-stems as -o- (Marcomanni, Longobardi); this appears
> as -a- in Gmc. texts (even Gothic and Runic Norse). The intermediate stage
> was apparently -e- (Alemanni, Alamanni). He also retains non-initial -e-
> before non-rhotic consonants, which later appears as -i- (not merely in
> umlauting position; Segestes against Sigismundus in Ammian, and Venedi
> against OHG Winida, etc.). Thus I would expect the Latinized Gmc. reflex of
> the presumed Q-Celtic loan to be *Magosenus, at least at Ruimel. By the
> late third century *Magesinus or *Magasinus might be expected. But in fact
> the vocalism is consistently Magusanus/Macusanus.
>
> My hunch is that Magusanus has nothing to do with Celtic, and that Toorians
> has merely neglected the issue with the vowels in order to create a
> pseudo-Celtic protoform, but before I nominate her for a Voltaire Award, I
> would like to know whether she actually did provide an explanation for the
> vowels. If anyone has read this paper and can inform me, I will appreciate
> it.
>
> Thanks in advance
> DGK
>
>
>