Cover not available

Article published In: NOWELE
Vol. 75:2 (2022) ► pp.123–159

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
EPUB logo with download linkDownload EPUB
authorization required

Grammatical core terminology in Icelandic

An onomasiological study

ORCiD logo with link | Uppsala University
Published online: 22 November 2022
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/nowele.00066.tar
Abstract
The article addresses a selection of meanings fundamental to linguistic discourse in Icelandic. Their diverse lexical manifestations were collected from twenty-four works, produced during eight centuries: from the First Grammatical Treatise (1130–1140) to Alexander Jóhannesson’s Frumnorræn málfræði (Alexander Jóhannesson. 1920. Frumnorræn málfræði. Reykjavík: Sigfús Eymundsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar), by which time current grammatical terminology had for the most part reached its “modern” state. The excerpted data is analyzed with regard to its internal organization, by exploring the nature of its systematization, the strategies employed in coining grammatical terminology, and the relationship between current Icelandic grammatical terminology and medieval and early-modern terminology. From the analysis it becomes clear that: (1) calquing (mostly structural) and autonomous word coinage are the most prolific strategies, whereas borrowing and the employment of inherited lexemes are marginal; (2) Latin is the principal direct model for terms, and Danish constitutes another important source. Direct influence of Ælfrician terminology on the Old Icelandic grammatical lexicon is questionable; (3) the terminology currently used primarily comprises terms stemming from the 19th, and to a lesser extent the 18th century, with medieval terminology still being employed only in the case of very basic terms.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Description of the corpus
  • 3.Analysis
    • 3.1General terminology
      • 3.1.1‘word’
      • 3.1.2‘language’
      • 3.1.3‘grammar, linguistic description’
      • 3.1.4‘letter’, ‘alphabet’
    • 3.2Phonetics/phonology
      • 3.2.1‘speech sound’
      • 3.2.2‘vowel’
      • 3.2.3‘consonant’
      • 3.2.4‘diphthong’
      • 3.2.5‘syllable’
    • 3.3Morphology
      • 3.3.1Gender: ‘masculine’, ‘feminine’, ‘neuter’
      • 3.3.2Case: ‘nominative’, ‘accusative’, ‘dative’, ‘genitive’
      • 3.3.3Comparison
      • 3.3.4Number, person, declension/conjugation
        • 3.3.4.1Number
        • 3.3.4.2Person
        • 3.3.4.3Declension/conjugation
      • 3.3.5Tense
      • 3.3.6Mood
      • 3.3.7Diathesis
    • 3.4Parts of speech
      • 3.4.1Noun
      • 3.4.2Verb
      • 3.4.3Pronoun
      • 3.4.4Article
      • 3.4.5Adjective
      • 3.4.6Numeral
      • 3.4.7Adverb
      • 3.4.8Preposition
      • 3.4.9Conjunction
      • 3.4.10Interjection
  • 4.Conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
References (76)
References
Aðalgeir Kristjánsson. 1985. Fjölnir. Skírnir 1591. 29–44.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
AeW = de Vries, J. 2000[1962]. Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. 2nd edn. Leiden: Brill.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Alexander Jóhannesson. 1920. Frumnorræn málfræði. Reykjavík: Sigfús Eymundsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Björn M. Ólsen (ed.). 1884. Den tredje og fjærde grammatiske afhandling i Snorres Edda. STUAGNL XII. Copenhagen: Fr. G. Knudtzon.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Clunies Ross, M. & J. Wellendorf. 2014. The Fourth Grammatical Treatise. London: Viking Society for Northern Research / UCL.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Diderichsen, P. 1960. Rasmus Rask og den grammatiske tradition: studier over vendepunktet i sprogvidenskabens historie. Copenhagen: Munksgaard.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
DDO = Den Danske Ordbog. Copenhagen: Det Danske Sprog- og Litteraturselskab. [URL]
Edgeworth Butler, H. 1920–1922. The institutio oratoria of Quintilian. London / New York: Heinemann / Harvard University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Finnbogi Guðmundssson. 1969. Frá Hallgrími Scheving. Árbók Landsbókasafns Íslands 261. 156–209.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Finnur Jónsson. 1908. Málfræði íslenzkrar tungu og helstu atriði sögu hennar í ágripi. Copenhagen: Sigurður Kristjánsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(ed.). 1927. Óláfr Þórðarson: Málhljóða- og málskrúðsrit. Det Kgl. Danske Videskaberners Selskab: Historisk-filologiske Meddelelser XIII, 2. Copenhagen: Bianco Luno.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1930. Rúnafræði. Ársrit hins íslenzka fræðafjelags í Kaupmannahöfn 111. 1–62.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum, vol. I 1825. Copenhagen: Hið norræna Fornfræðafèlag.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fowler, H. N. 1926. Cratylus, Parmenides, Greater Hippias, Lesser Hippias. London / New York: HeinemannGoogle Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gade, K. E. 2007. Ælfric in Iceland. In J. Quinn, K. Heslop & T. Wills (eds.), Learning and understanding in the Old Norse world, 321–339. Turnhout: Brepols. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Green, D. H. 1998. Language and history in the early Germanic world. Cambridge / New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Guðbrandur Vigfússon. 1857. Um stafrof og hneigíngar. Ný Félagsrit XVII1. 117–166.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gunnar Pálsson. 1782. Lijtid wngt Støfunar Barn. Hrappsey.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gunnlaugur Ingólfsson (ed.). 2017. Fjölnisstafsetningin. Reykjavík: Stofnun Árna Magnússonar í íslenskum fræðum.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Briem. 1875. Kennslubók í enskri tungu. Reykjavík: Einar Þórðarson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Briem Eggertsson. 1891. Stutt ágrip af íslenskri mállýsingu handa alþýðuskólum. Reykjavík.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Briem. 1918. Ágrip af íslenzkri málfræði. 3rd edn. Reykjavík.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Kr. Friðriksson. 1857. Dönsk málfræði. Copenhagen: Egill Jónsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1861. Íslenzk málmyndalýsing. Copenhagen: S. L. Møller.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1863. Þýzk málmyndalýsing. Reykjavík.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Hermannsson. 1938. The Icelandic Physiologus. Islandica XXVII. Ithaca (NY): Cornell University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Halldór Halldórsson. 1975. Old Icelandic heiti in Modern Icelandic. University of Iceland Publications in Linguistics 3. Reykjavík: Institute of Nordic Linguistics.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hreinn Benediktsson. 1972. The First Grammatical Treatise. University of Iceland Publications in Linguistics 1. Reykjavík: Institute of Nordic Linguistics.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
IeW = Alexander Jóhannesson. 1956. Isländisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. Bern: Francke.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
ÍOb = Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon. 2008. Íslensk orðsifjabók. 4th edn. Reykjavík: Orðabók Háskólans.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jespersen, O. 1906. Stutt ensk mállýsing. Transl. by Árni Þorvaldsson and Böðvar Kristjánsson. Reykjavík: Guðmundur Gamalíelsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jón Axel Harðarson (ed.). 1997. Jón Magnússon: Grammatica islandica = Íslenzk málfræði. Reykjavík: Málvísindastofnun Háskóla Íslands / Háskólaútgáfan.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jón Árnason. 1838. Dactylismus ecclesiasticus. Edited and published by Þ. Jónsson. Copenhagen: S. L. Møller.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1733. Donatus. Copenhagen.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1994[1738]. Nucleus Latinitatis. Edited by Guðrún Kvaran and Friðrik Magnússon. Orðfræðirit fyrri alda 3. Reykjavík: Orðabók Háskólans.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jón Ólafsson. 1911. Móðurmáls-bókin. Reykjavík.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1915. Litla móðurmálsbókin handa börnum og byrjendum. Reykjavík: Sigfús Eymundsson.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jón Þorkelsson et al. 1868. Latnesk orðmyndafræði. Reykjavík: Prentsmiðja Íslands.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jón Þorkelsson. 1868. Skýringar á vísum. Reykjavík: Prentsmiðja Íslands.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
KalkarsOrd. = Kalkars Ordbog. Copenhagen: Det Danske Sprog- og Litteraturselskab. [URL]
Konráð Gíslason. 1836. Þáttur umm stafsetníng. Fjölnir II1. 3–37.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1846. Um frum-parta íslenzkrar tungu í fornöld. Copenhagen: Hið Íslenzka Bókmenntafjelag.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1851. Dönsk orðabók með íslenzkum þýðingum. Copenhagen: Bianco Luno.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kristín Bjarnadóttir et al. 1988–1989. Skrá um íslensk málfræðirit til 1925: Mart finna hundar sér í holum. Íslenskt mál og almenn málfræði 10–111. 177–257.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lane, G. S. 1968. The lexical and grammatical materials in the Landsbókasafn. Scandinavian Studies 401. 111–131.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lehmann, W. P. 1986. A Gothic etymological dictionary. Leiden: Brill.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lýður. 1888–1891. Editor: Matthías Jochumsson. Akureyri.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Males, M. 2017. Character, provenance, and use of the Icelandic Fifth Grammatical Treatise. Arkiv för Nordisk Filologi 1321. 121–138.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Matthews, P. 1994. Greek and Latin linguistics. In G. Lepschy (ed.), History of linguistics: classical and medieval linguistics, 1–133. London / New York: Longman.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
McClean, R. J. 1962. The grammatical terminology of Modern Icelandic. Studia Germanica Gandensia 41. 291–300.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
ODS = Ordbog over det danske sprog. Copenhagen: Det Danske Sprog- og Litteraturselskab. [URL]
ONP = Ordbog over det norrøne prosasprog. Copenhagen: Københavns Universitet. [URL]
Ólafur Olavius. 1780. Greinileg Vegleidsla til Talnalistarinnar. Copenhagen: Thiele.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Perseus Digital Library. Medford (MA): Tufts University. [URL]
Raschellà, F. D. (ed.). 1982. The so-called Second Grammatical Treatise. Filologia Germanica: Testi e Studi II. Firenze: Le Monnier.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
1998. The classical heritage in Old Icelandic grammatical literature. In R. Brusegan & A. Zironi (eds.), L’antichità nella culturaeuropea del medioevo, 117–126. Greifswald: Reinecke Verlag.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
2004. Tradizione locale e modelli stranieri nella terminologia grammaticale islandese medievale. In V. Dolcetti Corazza & R. Gendre (eds.), I Germani e gli altri II parte, 3–37. Alessandria: Edizioni dell’Orso.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
2018. Eredità classica nel vocabolario tecnico dei trattati grammaticali islandesi medievali. In C. Di Sciacca et al. (eds.), Studies on Late Antique and Medieval Germanic glossography and lexicography in honour of Patrizia Lendinara, 605–621. Pisa: Edizioni ETS.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Rask, R. Chr. 1830. Lestrarkver handa heldri manna börnum. Copenhagen: Hið Íslenzka Bókmenntafèlag.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
RitOH = Ritmálssafn Orðabókar Háskólans. Reykjavík: Stofnun Árna Magnússonar í íslenskum fræðum. [URL]
SA III = Rask, R. Chr. 1838. Samlede Afhandlinger, 3rd1 vol. Copenhagen.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schad, S. 2007. A Lexicon of Latin Grammatical Terminology. Pisa / Roma: Fabrizio Serra Editore.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Shapiro, Marianne. 1990: De vulgari eloquentia–– Dante’s book of exile. Lincoln (NE): University of Nebraska Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Steinn Jónsson. 1719. Dægrastytting. Hólar.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Stuart Mill, J. 1886. Um frelsið. Transl. by Jón Ólafsson. Reykjavík: Hið íslenzka þjóðvinafélags.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Svavar Sigmundsson. 1981. Íslensk málfræðiheiti á 19. öld. In Guðrún Kvaran, Gunnlaugur Ingólfsson & Svavar Sigmundsson (eds.), Afmæliskveðja til Halldórs Halldórssonar 13. júlí 1981, 285–300. Reykjavík: Íslenska málfræðifélagið.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Söderwall = Söderwall, K. F. 1884–1918. Ordbok öfver svenska medeltids-språket. Lund.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tarsi, M. 2017. Jón Ólafsson from Grunnavík: cultivation of language in his early writings (1727–1737). Language & History 60(3). 180–189. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
2018. Modern Icelandic basic linguistic terminology: A survey from a historico-puristic perspective. In P. J. Molina Muñoz (ed.), Researchers in Progress II: Languages in contact: languages with history, 14–24. Nicosia: Language Centre of the University of Cyprus.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
2021. Loanwords and native words in Old and Middle Icelandic (12th c.–1550)–– Doctoral defense, June 30, 2020. Íslenskt mál og almenn málfræði 431. 143–157, 170–181.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
2022. Loanwords and native words in Old and Middle Icelandic (12th–1550). Studies in Viking and Medieval Scandinavia 4. Turnhout: Brepols. [revised version of Tarsi, M. 2020. Loanwords and native words in Old and Middle Icelandic (12th–1550) Reykjavík: University of Iceland, School of Humanities, Faculty of Icelandic and Comparative Cultural Studies. (Doctoral dissertation)]
Tímarit.is. Reykjavík: Landsbókasafn / Háskólabókasafn. [URL]
Tryggvi Gíslason. 1968. Íslensk málfræðiheiti miðalda. Reykjavík: Háskóli Íslands. (MA thesis)
Wills, T. 2001. The foundation of grammar: An edition of the first section of Óláfr Þórðarson’s grammatical treatise. Sydney: The University of Sidney, Faculty of Arts, Department of English. (Doctoral dissertation)
Wimmer, L. 1885. Forníslenzk málmyndalýsing. Transl. by Valtýr Guðmundsson. Reykjavík.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Þórbergur Þórðarson. 1933. Alþjóðamál og málleysur. Reykjavík: Bókadeild Menningarsjóðs.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Tarsi, Matteo
2023. Linguistic terminology in Swedish and Danish with comparison of Icelandic. NOWELE. North-Western European Language Evolution 76:1 ► pp. 23 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 28 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue