Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/saiwalō

This Proto-Germanic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Germanic

Etymology

Uncertain with several theories:

from *saiwiz (“sea, ocean”) +‎ *-alō, in connection to the pagan Germanic belief in sacred lakes inhabited by the dead and the unborn, compare the Sami borrowing from Germanic, *Sāvjë, a realm of the dead believed to be under special double-bottomed lakes,[1]
from Proto-Indo-European *sóh₂i-wl̥ ~ *sh₂i-wéns, possibly cognate with Proto-Balto-Slavic *séiˀlāˀ (“strength, force; soul”), Latin saevus (“fierce”), Proto-Celtic *saitlom (“life, age”), Latin saeculum (“generation, lifetime”), perhaps either from *seh₂y- (“to bind”) or homonym *seh₂y- (“rage, fury”),[2] making it possibly again related to *saiwiz (“sea, ocean”),
or from *s(w)ai (“self”), from Proto-Indo-European *swoy-, + *walō (“choice, will”), from Proto-Indo-European *wolh₁-eh₂, from *welh₁-.[3]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈsɑi̯.wɑ.lɔː/

Noun

*saiwalō f[4][5]

soul, life force

Inflection

ō-stemDeclension of *saiwalō (ō-stem)
	singular	plural
nominative	*saiwalō	*saiwalôz
vocative	*saiwalō	*saiwalôz
accusative	*saiwalǭ	*saiwalōz
genitive	*saiwalōz	*saiwalǫ̂
dative	*saiwalōi	*saiwalōmaz
instrumental	*saiwalō	*saiwalōmiz

Derived terms

*saiwalōną

Descendants

Proto-West Germanic: *saiwalu
- Old English: sāwol, sāwel, sāwal, sāul, sōwhul
  - Middle English: soule, saul, saule, souel, soul, soull, soulle, sowel, sowele, sowle, sowll, sowyl; sauele, sawlæ, sawle, sæule; sauel, saull, saulle, sawel, sawele, sawell, sawil, sawle; zaule
    - English: soul (see there for further descendants)
    - Scots: saul
  - → Old Norse: sála, sál
    - Icelandic: sál
    - Faroese: sál
    - Norwegian Nynorsk: sål
    - Old Gutnish: selu
- Old Frisian: sēla
  - North Frisian: siel, sial
  - Saterland Frisian: Seele
  - West Frisian: siel
- Old Saxon: sēola
  - Middle Low German: sêle
    - Low German:
      - German Low German: Seel
      - Westphalian:
        Sauerländisch: Siäle, Säile, Saile, Sǟle
        Westmünsterländisch: Seele, Sääle
    - Plautdietsch: Seel
  - → Old Norse:
    - Norwegian: sjel
    - Old Swedish: siæl, sial
      - Swedish: själ
    - Danish: sjæl
- Old Dutch: sēla
  - Middle Dutch: siele
    - Dutch: ziel
      - Afrikaans: siel
    - Limburgish: zeel
- Old High German: sēla
  - Middle High German: sēle
    - Alemannic German: Seel
    - Central Franconian: Siel
    - German: Seele
    - Luxembourgish: Séil
    - Vilamovian: zejł
Gothic: 𐍃𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌻𐌰 (saiwala)

References

Weisweiler, Josef (1940), “Seele und See”, in Indogermanische Forschungen (in German), volume 41, DOI:10.1515/9783110242980.25, pages 25–55
Walde, Alois (1923) Indogermanische Forschungen (in German), volume 12, page 382
Mezger, Fritz (1968), “Gotisch saiwala ‘Seele’”, in Kuhns Zeitschrift (in German), volume 82, JSTOR 40849402, page 382
Orel, Vladimir (2003), “*saiwalō”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 314
Kroonen, Guus (2013), “*saiwalō-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 423

[1] Weisweiler, Josef (1940), “Seele und See”, in Indogermanische Forschungen (in German), volume 41, DOI:10.1515/9783110242980.25, pages 25–55

[2] Walde, Alois (1923) Indogermanische Forschungen (in German), volume 12, page 382

[3] Mezger, Fritz (1968), “Gotisch saiwala ‘Seele’”, in Kuhns Zeitschrift (in German), volume 82, JSTOR 40849402, page 382

[4] Orel, Vladimir (2003), “*saiwalō”, in A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 314

[5] Kroonen, Guus (2013), “*saiwalō-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 423