This is page 729 of An Icelandic-English Dictionary by Cleasby/Vigfusson (1874)

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Þ -- ÞAKNÆFRAR. 729

Þ

Þ (þorn) was adopted from the Runic alphabet; its ancient name was þorn (thorn), -- þann staf er flestir menn kalla þorn, Skálda (Thorodd) 168, cp. Edda ii. 365, -- and it is still so called in Icel.; the ancients also called it 'þurs' (giant), which was originally the name of a magical Rune, intended to cause love-madness, and in the Runic poem it is so called -- þurs veldr kvenna kvillu; but in the poem Skm. 'þurs' means the magical Rune, -- 'þurs' ríst ek þér ok þrjá stafi, 'ergi,' 'æði,' ok 'óþola,' Skm. 36. Thorodd proposed to call it 'þé' (like dé, té, bé), Skálda 168. In the Runic inscriptions it is marked RUNE, seldom RUNE; the letter is evidently derived from Gr.-Lat., being a RUNE or RUNE with the vertical stroke prolonged both ways.

B. SPELLING, PRONUNCIATION, CHANGES. -- For the spelling of the ancient vellums see introduction to letter D (p. 93, col. 2). In Icel. there is phonetically a double th sound, as in English, but subject to a different rule; the hard th, marked þ is only sounded as the initial letter of distinct syllables; whereas the soft th, marked ð is only sounded as a medial or final; and that the case was the same in olden times, as early as the 12th century, is borne out by the statement of the second grammarian (Gramm. p. xv, col. 1), who counts hard th, or þ, among the 'head-letters,' as he calls them, whereas the soft ð he counts among the 'sub-letters' (p. xv, col. 2, ll. 4-6). That the initial th had only one sound in Icelandic is also borne out by the mod. Faroe dialect, which has the closest affinity to the Icelandic; for here the initial þ has, in pronouns and particles as well as in nouns, changed into t as in ting, tu, teir. But in the rest of Scandinavia the case is different, for there (Dan., Swed., Norse) the initial þ has been changed into d in all particles and pronouns, de, du, der, dem, den, dette, dig, deden, for-di (ti is an exception); whilst, in all other words, it has been changed into t, as in ting taale, tre, etc., which points to a hard and soft th sound, used not as in Icelandic, but as in modern English. According to the views of a gradual and successive 'laut-verschiebung,' as set forth in Mr. Sweet's essay 'On the Old English Ð' (Appendix 1. to Gregory's Pastoral Care, p. 496 sqq.), the Icelandic and the Faroïc represent phonetically a later, the early Danish (old Scandinavian and English) an earlier stage in the development of this sound. It is curious to see how in the Faroïc the sound has come round to Gr.-Lat. again; thus Faroïc trir, tu, = Lat. tres, tu, in Dan. tree, but du. II. in Icelandic a word with initial þ forming the latter part of a compound, or even if spelt separately, is apt to be changed into ð as soon as it loses its full sound, and is pronounced rapidly as an inflexive syllable, the latter part in questions becoming half enclitic, see introduction to letter D, p. 93, col. 2 (C. II). In vellums this is very frequent in the words al-ðingi, Svi-ðióð, al-ðýða (= alþingi...); so also á ðingi = á þingi, Js. 39; örvar-ðingi, id.; Vaf-ðruðnir, Sæm. (Bugge); hug-ðekkr, Ó.H. 16, etc.; the pr. names Hall-dórr, Hall-dóra point to a Hall-ðórr, Hall-ðóra, = Hall-þórr, Hall-þora; so also Stein-dórr = Stein-ðórr = Stein-þórr, for a þ could only change into d through ð; in Arnórr, qs. Arn-þórr, the þ has been dropped (Arn-þórr, Arn-ðórr, Arn-órr?); lítt-at = lítt-þat, hítt-ó-heldr = hitt-þó-heldr, flýttier, make haste, already cited in Run. Gramm.; cp. also tlie change of the pron. þú into -du, -ðu, -tu, -ú, when suffixed. Quite different and much older is the dropping of initial þ (i.e. ð) in the particles enn = ann = þann, Engl. than, and in at = þat, Engl. that, Old Germ. daz: in the pronouns þér, þið, for ér, ið, the þ comes from the termination of the preceding verb. For the rest see the introduction to letter D, to which we may add that a single Icelandic vellum, the later handwriting in Arna-Magn. 645, now published in Post. (Unger) 216-236, is interesting for its uncertain use of þ and ð; at the time it was written, the ð was still a newly adopted letter, and the transcriber uncertain as to its use, so that no conclusion may be drawn from this isolated case; these are the instances, -- upp ðu, 216. ll. 19, 27, 219. l. 39; skírþr ðegar, 217. l. 9; upp ðegar, 220. l. 1; blezoþu ðeim, 217. l. 34; af ðeim, 223. l. 10; fyrir ðeim, 224. ll. 14, 18; boþer ðeim, 228. l. 19; viþ ðú, 218. l. 13, 235. l. 5; þá ðaþan, 235. l. 17; af ðvi, 219. l. 15, 232. l. 21, 234. l. 11, 235. l. 13; ifer ðá, 222. l. 31; firir ða trú, 232. l. 34; frá ðér at þú (sic), 226. l. 23; frá þér ef ðu (four lines below); ek biþ ðik, 227. l. 17; viþ ðik, 236. l. 7: after a comma, ðá er rétt, 231. l. 36; ðu laust, 233. l. 32: with nouns and verbs, of ðorp ok borgir, 217. l. 35; ok ðökkuþu, 224. l. 25; firir ðys alþyðo, 227. l. 12. III. the Icel. þ answers to Gr.-Lat. t, see e.g. the root tan (GREEK) compared to the Icel, þenja, þunnr; þrir = Lat. tres; þrömr = Gr. GREEK, Lat. terminus; þefr, cp. Lat. t&e-short;pidus, etc., see the special words. 2. again, Germ. d answers to Icel. þ, ding, drei, denken; in a few words the laut-verschiebung is irregular, thus, Engl. tight, Icel. þéttr; þurfa = Engl. dare. Only a few words with initial þ have been adopted in later times, such are, þenkja, þanki, þrykkja (= Germ. denken, ge-danke, drücken); these words were borrowed about the time of the Reformation, probably from German, not Danish, i.e. from words with d; in these words the laut-verschiebung, strange to say, has been duly observed, as if by instinct, which would hardly have been the case had it been borrowed through the Danish t: but in tráss = Germ. dratzen, mod. Germ. trotzen, Icel. þrátta, tlie true form has not been restored; so also in mod. usage Icelanders are beginning to say tak, tak (= Dan. tak = thanks), unmindful of their own þakk, þakka: t and þ are unsettled in tyrma and þyrma; tolla, see þola (II); tremill and þremill; þeisti and teista: f and þ interchange in Icel. þél, Engl. file; þel and Lat. pilus, þel and fjöl, and in a few other words: s and þ in súst for þust.

ÞAÐAN, adv., in Norse vellums often spelt þeðan, N.G.L. i. 23; þanan, Hb. (1865), 6, 12, 14: [A.S. þonan; Dan. deden] :-- thence, from there; skamt þaðan, Nj. 9; koma þaðan, Vsp. 19, 20. Vþm. 14; þaðan af falla ár þær er svá heita, Edda 24; fregna e-t þaðan, Bs. i. 652; þaðan eiga vötn öll vega, Gm. 26: without a strict notion of motion, börðusk þeir þaðan um daginn, Nj. 43; þú skalt stela þaðan mat á tvá hesta, 74; bíða þaðan, to bide in a place, Hkv. 1. 22, Ó.T. 6, MS. 623. 60; hann hafði þ. njósnir norðr í Noreg, ok fékk þ. þá eina spurn, Ó.H. 200; annat kann ek þér þ. segja, Edda 24; ok vættir þú þ. fulltings, Blas. 48. 2. metaph., þaðan mátti skilja, thence it could be understood, Fms. xi. 420; þaðan af aldir alask, thence, i.e. thereby, Vþm. 48; skulu vér þaðan at vera, i.e. we will be on that side, Fms. x. 322; þaðan af veit ek, therefrom I know, i. 97; allan helming, eða þaðan af meira, full half and even more, Sks. 63; þaðan af sér Sverrir, at ..., Fms. viii. 14. 3. temp. thenceforth; þaðan eru tólf nætr til Þorláks-messu, K.Þ.K. 106; þaðan af, þaðan frá, since; görðusk þaðan af mörg tíðendi, Edda 6, Fb. i. 40; þaðan frá mælti hann ekki höfugt orð, Bs. i. 341; meirr þaðan, more thence = later on, Akv.; þ. lengi, long since, Haustl.

þaðra, adv. [Ulf. þaþreh = GREEK, not = GREEK], there, an older form = þar; saðr var öngr fyrir þaðra, Sighvat; þar munu vér skína sem sól, ok þaðra mon Kristr sýna oss alla dýrð sína. Hom. (St.); kurum land þaðra, Am. 97; görisk svá brátt, at þaðra eru konur í borginni, Fms. xi. 99; þeir herja þaðra um eyjar ok annes, Fær. 83; þótti hann þaðra í sveitum gildr bóndi, Finnb. 360: also in later poets for the sake of rhyme, slíkt eru brögðin þaðra, Skíða R. 39, 152.

þafðr, part. stamped, of cloth, Bragi; see þæfa, Eb. 70 new Ed.

þaga, u, f. silence; in endr-þaga, silence in return.

þagall, mod. þögull, adj. (fem. þögul), silent, Hm. 15.

þagat, see þangat.

þagga, að. In silence; betra er fyrr þagat (from þegja) en annarr hafi 'þaggat,' Skálda (Thorodd): the word is freq. in mod. usage, þagga niðr í e-m, to hush one down, silence one.

þag-mælska, u, f. a keeping silent.

þag-mælskr, adj. silent, discreet, Ad. 1, and freq. in mod. usage.

þagna, að, to become silent; konungr þagnar við. Nj. 6; konungr þagnar hvert sinn er Þórólfs er getið, Eg. 54; þá þagna þeir, Ld. 78, Fms. vi. 374; eptir þat þagnaði (þacnaðe Cod.) barnit, Bs. i. 342; síðan es hann þagnaði, left speaking, Íb. 7; hann sezt niðr ok þagnar, Skíða R. 145.

þagnar-, gen., see þögn, silence.

þagsi, adj.; the parent-word of the mod. Dan. tavs (silent) has hitherto not been found in the old Icel. literature; it should be þagsi, but most if not all words of that form were obsolete as early as the 12th and 13th centuries, and have disappeared in mod. Icel., as hugsi, staðsi, heitsi ...; we believe it is preserved in the corrupted 'þegn varð' in the transcript of the Íb., where we propose to read, svá at allir menn myndi 'þagsi verða' (= Dan. blive tavse) meðan hann mælti at lögbergi, so that all men would become silent whilst he spoke on the Law-bill, Íb. 7. In an ancient vellum a RUNE, with the upper end of the s faint or blotted out, and an n or RUNE would be distinguished with difficulty; and as to an Icel. transcriber þagsi was quite an unknown word, while 'þegu,' 'þagu' were familiar syllables, he would choose the latter; the vellum itself was lost soon after the copy had been taken in A.D. 1651. In Rb. (Ísl. i. 385) the word has been paraphrased into 'þegja;' see the Academy, vol. i, p. 278.

ÞAK, n. [A.S. þæc; Engl. thack, thatch; Scot. thak; Germ. dach; Dan. tag; see þekja] :-- thatch, roof, Edda 2, Nj. 115, Gkv. 3. 2, Fms. viii. 374; spán-þak, torf-þak, timbr-þak. 2. metaph. = baug-þak, Grág. ii. 174.

þakin-næfrar, f. pl. = þaknæfrar, Hm. 159.

ÞAKKA, að, [A.S. þancjan; Engl. thank; O.H.G. dankon; Germ. danken; Dan. takke] :-- to thank; þakka e-m e-t; þ. þeim þetta starf, Stj. 496; konungr þakkaði honum kvæðit, Ísl. ii. 230; goðum ek þat þakka er þér gengsk ílla, Am. 53; Rútr minntisk við hana ok þakkaði henni, Nj. 7; vér viljum þakka hingat-kvámu öllum Enskum mönnum, Fms. viii. 250; bændr þökkuðu vel Þorkatli liðveizlu, Orkn.; þakka e-m fyrir e-t, Fms. v. 194, and passim.

þakkan, f. a thanking, Barl. 36.

þakk-látr, adj. thankful, grateful, Fms. viii. 253, passim in mod. usage.

þakk-læti, n. thankfulness, thanks, Bs. i. 322, Th. 25, Karl. 132, 263.

þakk-næmr, adj. [Dan. tak-nemmdig], thankful, grateful, Al. 36.

þakk-samliga, adv. thankfully, gratefully. Eg. 106, 162, 198, Sks. 702, Al. 88; biðja þ., to beg hard, Fms. xi. 288.

þakk-samligr, adj. thankful, grateful, Fms. vii. 95, Stj. 496; mörg þakksamlig tíðindi, good news, Fms. viii. 100.

þak-lauss, adj. thatchless, roofless, Art. 17.

þak-næfrar, f. pl. bark used for thatching, N.G.L. ii. 138.