Angus J Huck
20-1-2003
Iberian points of the compass (and more)
Dear Luisma,
How many Iberian points of the compass do we know?
Well, for a start, we can be reasonably sure that
the word for "west" was *tarte-, as in Tartessos,
the Basque cognate being sart-alde.
The word for "south" appears to have
been *konte-/gonto-, which comprises *kon/gon
"highest" plus an unidentified suffix, the whole word meaning
"highest point", ie the highest point of the sun.
*konte-/gonto- is found in the following
classical sources (one tribal, three place-names):-
Contestani, the name of the people living
around Jativa and Alcoy.
Contosolia (Magacela, Spain), literally
"south cultivated field" (-solia is Kontobris
(unlocated, but in Portugal) (it is unclear if the bris found in many
names in this region is buru or briga or something else).
identical with Basque solo/soro).
Petregontio (Peyregoux, France) = bet(e)-iri-gonti
"south main village".
On the subject of Iberian *beda
"gateway to the next world?", note two mountain names in southern
Navarra: Vedadillo (outside Falces), and Portal (east of
Tudela), which may be a translation of *beda.
As you may know, the official Vasconist party-line
is the Basque names Iberian toponyms found in the region in Roman
sources (eg Alisanco, Idubeda, Antequia, Vareia, etc), and also the
clearly Iberian personal names found on the Ascoli bronze plate in
connection with the Roman known of Libia (Leiva). Also ignored
is the fact that of these names exhibit archaic features found in Iberian
sources, but not in any known form of Basque. For instance Turza,
which is clearly Iberian *turri-sa "place of fountains",
and lacks the additional anterior i- found in Basque even in Roman
times. And what about Ezcaray, which incorporates the Iberian word
for "house", *ese/esi, note intervocalic s,
as in Iberian, not ch as in Basque)? Or Ituzarra, which
incorporates the now lost idu/ido/itu "peak", as in Idubeda,
a few miles away?
With best wishes,
21-1-2003
Iberian points of the compass (2)
Dear Luisma,
In my e-mail of 20/1/2003, I managed to get two
lines mixed up!
So I'll correct them here:-
Contosolia (Magacela, Spain),
literally "south cultivated field" (-solia is identical
with Basque solo/soro).
Kontobris (unlocated but in Portugal)
(it is unclear if the -bris found in many names in this region is buru
or briga or something else).
I also described the -te suffix in
Iberian *konte-/gonte- "south" as
"unidentified".
I think, in fact, it means "season" or
"period", as it can do in Basque. The whole would mean
"period of the highest", ie the time at which the sun is at its
highest point in the sky, which is noon.
Now, "south" is a point of the
compass, an expression of place, not time. But Latin meridies means
both "south" and "noon", so if it's good enough for
Latin, it's good enough for Iberian!
With best wishes,