C, g, n, or s, sometimes stands before -ian; as, gearc-ian to prepare, syn-g-ian to sin, wít-n-ian to punish, mær-s-ian to magnify; from gearu ready, yare, syn sin, wíte punishment, mære great, famous. -án is contracted from -angan, -ágan, or -agan, and -ahan; as, gangan, gán to go; smeágan, smeán to consider, enquire; preagan, preán to vex; sleahan, sleán (G. schlagen) to strike, slay. -ón is contracted from -angan, or -ógan; as, fangan, fón to take; teógan, teón to draw, tug. -ettan: hál-ettan to hail, greet, from hál whole, hale. After c and g, e is not seldom inserted; as, ræc-ean, picg-ean, for ræc-an to reach, picg-an to touch, taste, &c. Other verbs in general form the infinitive in -an. V.-Particles. Adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions, are either primitive words, that is, not to be further resolved in the language treated of, or are formed from nouns (often obsolete), adjectives, &c. governed by a preposition expressed or understood. Of the former kind are nú now, geó (iú), formerly, eft again, get (iet), yet, be by, &c. for for, tó to, ac but, gif if, &c. (to take the cases in order) are the accusatives on-weg (a-weg) a-way; on-bæc (under-, ofer-bæc) a-back, back; (on-)ge-mang a-mong; on-gean (a-gen) a-gain, a-gainst; ealne-weg al-way. Of the latter kind, -e (abl. or dat.) forms many adverbs from nouns, adjectives,(1) &c.; as, on-riht-e (L. rect-e) (2) a-riht a-right, rightly; lang-e (L. long-e) long; mid-e alle altogether; be-dale partly; tó-sóde in sooth, truly; ofdúne, a-dún a-down, down; tó-gædere (æt-gædere), tó-somne (æt-somne, G. zu-saminen), to-gether. líc-e (E. -ly; the same, borrowed from adjectives in -líc): sceort-líc-e short-ly, strang-líc-e strong-ly. Other ablatives are the conjunctions for-py therefore; (for-) hwý? (for) why?; datives for-þám because, toþón-þæt in order that, síð-pán (G. seit-dem) since. -um, -on (abl. or dat. plur.): (on) hwíl-um, hwil on whilome, whiles, wundr-um wondrously, hwyrft-um by turns, sticce-mælum (3) piece-meal, be lytl-um and lytl-um by little and little, furđ-um (-on) even, just, on-sundr-on in-sunder, a-sunder. -es (genitive): niht-es(1) (vUKT-оç, G. nacht-s) of a night, by night, will-es willingly, néd-es of necessity, needs, eall-es altogether, nall-es by no means, sóc es of a truth, tó-gean-es against, tó-midd-es amidst. -a, -unga, -inga (perhaps gen. plur.): gear-a of (1) Those in -h and -u take g and w, as, heáh, heáge; nearu, near we see Adjectives Def., and Indef. I. (2) L. adverbs in -e were perhaps ablatives, like those in -o, as ver-o and the like. (3) Stic (II. 1) piece, bit, (steak) (G. stück); mál (II. 3) (G. mahl) meal, time of eating, milking cows, &c. (4) The proper genitives of niht, willa, and néd (neód) are nihte, willan, néde; at an early stage of the language, all nouns formed the gen. in -es or s; comp. the many Gr. and L. genitives in -oc &c. and -is. yore, son-a soon, forthwith, eall-unga altogether, holinga in vain, yrr-inga angrily. -an (an oblique case): niw-an of late, newly, for-an before, on-midd-an, a-midd-an a-mid, wid-út-an without, búf-an(5) (for be-úf-an) a-bove; a-bút-an (for on-be-út-an) a-bout, &c. Other adverbial terminations are: -der (motion to-): hi-der hi-ther, pi-der thi-ther, hwi-der whi-ther. -on, -an (motion from-): heon-on hence, pan-on thence, hwan-on whence. -r, -ra, -e, &c. (rest in-): her here, þær (para) there hwar (hwar) where; inn-e within, út-e without. VI.-Composition.(6) The A. S. language, like the Greek, German, &c. abounds in compound words, of which the last part commonly settles the part of speech. Nouns and adjectives are usually compounded together, and with verbs, without change, as in English, &c.; as, fíc-treow fig-tree, heáfod-man (G. haupt-mann) head-man, captain, heáhsacerd, high-priest, bisce op-ríce bishop-ric, stæfcræft letter-craft, grammar, medo-ærn(7) mead-hall, peow-boren slave-born, stede-fæst stead-fast, bealofull baleful, sná w-hwít (G. schnee-weiss) snow-white, íren-heard (G. eisen-hart) as hard as iron, lif-fæstan (5) D. boven; "Oranje boven!" (") See Rask, pp. 113-117. (7) Or-ern; sealt-ern salt-ern. to quicken, ful-fremman (G. voll-bringen) to ful-fil, and the like. A noun, however, standing first, is often put in the genitive case, especially in local names; as, dómesdæg doom's-day, hilde-byrne war-corslet; Engla-land England, land of the Angles; Cant-wara-burh Canterbury, burgh of the Kenters; Cinges-tún King's-town, Kingston; Beorminga-hám Birming-ham, home of the Beormings; Oxena-ford Ox-ford, ford of oxen; from dóm, hild, Engle, Cant-ware, cing, Beorming, oxa. One or each part is sometimes shortened, &c.; as, frum-cenned first-born, æl-beorht all-bright, mild-heort mild-hearted; from fruma beginning, eall, milde, heorte. Prepositions and adverbs commonly stand before verbs, &c. without change, as in English, German, &c.; as, ymb-gang (G. um-gang) circuit; purh-faran (G. durch-fahren) to go through; wiđstandan (G. wider-stehen) to with-stand; tó-cyme coming to (L. ad-ventus); fore-rynel fore-runner; foremihtig (L. præ-potens) very mighty; úp-riht (G. aufrecht) up-right; úp-stígan(1) (G. auf-steigen) to go up; nider-stígan (G. nieder-steigen) to go down ; ford-gán (G. fort-gehen) to go forth; út-lág out-law (L. ex-lex); ofer-cuman to over-come; ofer-mód (G. über-muth) pride; under-niman (G. unter-nehmen) to under-take; fram-ge-wítan to depart from; in-lædan (G. einleiten) to lead in; geond-geótan to pour through, suffuse; on-gean-cyrran to turn back again; of-sceótan (') Stígan (G. steigen) answers to L. scandere; ad-scendere, descendere, &c. (G. ab-schiessen) to shoot off; æfter-fyligend successor, one who follows after; mid-sídian to travel with; sundor-spræc conversation apart; samod-(sam-)-wyrcan to work together, co-operate. The preposition be, bi, usually becomes big in composition; as, big-spel (G. bei-spiel) example, parable ; big-standan (G. bei-stehen) to stand by; it may thus be known from the particle be, which sometimes becomes bi; as, be-standan, bi-standan (G. be-stehen) to stand on, occupy.(2) On often becomes an- or a-; as, on-bídan, an-bídan, a-bídan to a-bide. Et and of in composition often mean from, away; as, æt-berstan to burst away, od-yrnan to run away, escape, like G. ent-bersten, -rinnen. Particles are also freely compounded together. Prepositions, and other particles in composition, are often parted from their verb, as in German; but the same rules can hardly be given in A. S. In general, þurh, úp, niđer, tó, forð, út, in, on, bi (big) are separable; a-, an-, be-, ge-, ed-, un-, or-, mis-, od, and-, wid, sam-, for-, to-, are inseparable; æt, of, &c. are rarely separated. CHAPTER VII. THE A.S. Syntax in general resembles that of Greek and German; but it bears the closest likeness, with some remarkable points of difference from that and other (2) See Formation of Particles. H |