Re: The Origins of Zürich...


"Franz Gnaedinger" <frgn@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1168081560.066137.176650@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

(snip)

Franz wrote:
For the time being, Ziu rihi, as proposed by Heidi, is a
plausible candidate for a later Alemannic overforming,
and goes along fairly well with my hypothesis about the
oldest name of the recently discovered 5,000 years old
settlement on the hill whose top we call Lindenhof, place
of the later Roman castellum: TYR AC Turicum Turegum
... Zürich Zurich.

I looked up a Celtic dictionary and found these names
for Zurich: *Turi-cus Tur-ec(g)um / Dat... Tyrici / In pago
Durgaugense, in sito, qui dicitur Zurighauvia / In pago
Durgauginse seu in sito Zurighauvia / Ziurichi / Castrum
Torico / Castro Turico / In castro Turico / P(rae)p(ositus)
sta(tionis) Turicen(sis) XL (quadragesimae) G(alliarum).
Dur- dor- tur- is a rather frequent word in river names,
Du-ri for Thur, Thurgau (Durganense / Durgauginse),
wherefrom Winterthur, a city name.

Franz, something keeps nagging at my mind: Thurs is a word often used to
mean "giant."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurisaz

There is a story about Thor returning from one of his adventures when he
came across a giantess who straddled the river and caused it to rise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gj%C3%A1lp_and_Greip

Perhaps the word Thor and/or Thurs are somehow connected to the Thur names,
ie. Winterthur...Winter Giant.

Heidi


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