Chapter CCXVII: Section V: Protection

_Bar_—the word for strength—has been most fertile in produce. Its progeny are far too numerous to describe; but the most notable at present in use are the Berg, the strength of the hills, a mountain, and Burg, a fortress.

The names derived from it are, in combination, the _bjorg_ of the North, in the masculine, meaning protector, and _borg_, the feminine, meaning, perhaps, protection,—the _berge_ of the Germans and _burg_ of the Anglo-Saxons answering to the same. The Anglo-Saxon ladies also bear names ending with _burh_, also from the same root, and meaning a pledge, the strength of an engagement, and the origin of our verb, _to borrow_. Burrhed, king of Mercia, bore this name; but instances of it are not very common.

Birger, Byrger, Birge, are the masculines much used in Scandinavia; and the combinations were Biorgulv, Bergthor, Bergthora, the faithful wife of Njal, and Bergliot, the daughter of Thorer the Silent,—the same name that has been already mentioned as the northern one that has been mixed with the Irish Brighid, and which would mean protecting ugliness. Other forms are Bergswain, protecting youth, Berghild, answering to our Mercian princess Burgenhild, and Borgny, apt to be cut down to Borny.

This is the word to which the Burgundians owed their title, as dwellers in burghs, instead of wanderers on the open plain.

Another large race of names comes from the Gothic _warjan_, Anglo-Saxon _warian_,—the ‘_ware_’ of rustic shouts in England like the ‘_gare_’ of France, the latter syllable of beware and aware, and the _wehrer_ of Germany. The quality of precaution furnished the North with its favourite terminations _var_ and _vara_, indicating the possession of the prudent virtue that makes a man _wary_. It does not begin names, but it often ends them, both in the North and Germany, as Geirvar, Hervar, Amalvara, Hildiwara, &c.

The inhabitant was the natural defender, and in Anglo-Saxon and Norsk _ware_ became synonymous with the dweller, as Cantwara, the defenders of Kent, for the Kentishmen; Burgwara, the burghers; and in the North, Vikvarjar, bay defender. _Ware_, a defender, is thus a commencement in the German Warimunt, Guarding protection, the Vœrmund of the Mercian genealogy, and Vermund of the North, while its surviving representatives in France are Guiremond and Vermont.

Warenheri, or Protecting-warrior, is the Guarniero of Tasso, the Garnier of France, whence this form came to England as a surname after the Edict of Nantes, whilst Warner had been the legitimate descendant of the native Vœrnhare.

Warand, the German participle name, may have assisted in forming Guérin and Warren, unless there was a Warewine to account for it. Warnfrid or Warno, Werinhold and Warnebold, are also German.

The defender was with us the _Weard_, guard-warden, and _weardian_ was to ward or guard; as in French _garde_ and _garder_, in the North _vördhr_, in Germany _wart_, _warten_. This is the favourite termination, the _ward_ of England passing the _wart_ of Germany, the _vard_ of the North; but of rare appearance as a commencement, though there is an instance of a German Wartgar, or guardian-spear.

These are extremely like the words taken from _to gird_, like _gerda_, _gaard_, &c., but they are essentially different: watching is here the idea of safety, as enclosure is there.

The termination _mund_, so common among all the Teuton nations, has been a very great difficulty. Some regard it as the German _mund_ or _munths_, a mouth. The fact, however, appears to be that _mund_ means a hand in the elder languages, and from a hand was early transferred to him who used his hand in protection.

All the best authorities agree in translating _mund_ as protection; but as _mund_, a hand, is a feminine noun, the derivation from this source is a little doubtful, as the only lady’s name thus terminated is Rosamond. It is never a prefix.

Names ending in _mund_, hand, are often confused with those finishing in _mod_ or _muth_, meaning courage or wrath, the _mood_ of England and _muth_ of Germany. Even in very early times, Thurismund, or Thurismod, would be indifferently written; but _mod_ is not very common, and is apt to shorten into _mo_, as Thormod, Tormo.

The Germans used to imagine that all their names ending in _hulf_ meant help; but this pleasant faith was destroyed by the northern wolf, and only one real _help_ name is extant, the Helfrich of modern Germany, and Hialfrek of the North, which own an ancient precedent in the old Frank Hialperik or Chilperic.

The pronunciation of _ward_ runs so naturally into _hard_, that many names, which when traced to their roots, turn out to terminate with _ward_, are spelt in German and French as if they were _hard_. The word _hard_ does, however, really enter into the composition of a few names, chiefly German. There is, however, a semi-mythical northern lady called by the amiable name of Harthgrepa, Firm-grip or Hard-claw; and HartheKnad, or, as we call him, Hardicanute, seems to have had this distinguishing epithet added to his father’s name. The most noted of the other forms was Hardwine, Firm friend, the Hardouin of old French chroniclers, called in Italy Ardoino.

Harding, firm
Hartrich, firm king
Hartwig, firm war
Hartmund, firm protection
Hartmod, firm spirit.

The names in _rand_ have likewise been a difficulty; but the word is best referred to the Gothic _razn_, a house, and likewise a shield, from the protection both afford.

Rand is a northern prefix, and its derivatives are not easy to distinguish from those of Regin and Raven. Röndolfr, or House wolf, was certainly a northern name, and the same seems to have belonged to St. Radulphus, bishop of Bourges in 888, and to thirty-eight Radulfs in Domesday Book, then to the good justiciary, Ranulf de Glanville, under Henry II., to the crusading Earl Randle of Chester, and subsequently to many a Randal, Randolf, and Ralf, or, as we foolishly spell the word, Ralph.

The North had Rannveig, House-liquor, by way of a lady, and have shortened her into Rannog and Ronnau, also Rannmod, Randvid, Randve, or Randverr, house consecration.

Fast—in the sense of firm, not of quick—is found in the northern Fastolf, in the Frank queen, Fastrade, Firm council, in Fastburg, Fastmann, Fastmund. Lidvard, an old Norse name, that with us has run into Ledyard, in its own country into Levor, is the gate ward.

Tryggve, a favourite old northern name, is the true or trusty. The same word sometimes serves as a termination, as in Sigtryg or Sihtric.