Why Do We Call Them These Names?

Updated May 11, 2014

As part of English word histories, I thought you might like to know why we call various groups of people certain names. By the title, you probably thought I was going to get into why we call some people SOBs, asses, idiots, and such, but see, I fooled ya! My intention is to come back to this overall subject occasionally and cover terms for other ethnic, nationality, and linguistic groups. For this article, I figured I'd stick with terms more closely associated with English, and since English is a Germanic language, I'll start with terms for various Germanic groups. Remember, Germanic and German are NOT the same thing. Germans are Germanic, but all Germanic people are NOT German. See below why there is common confusion among English speakers for these terms, but stay focused, because it can be a bit confusing and hard to follow. Just a note, I've tried to put Old English spelling/sounds into the equivalent modern spelling, as Old English had some different "letters/symbols" no longer in use to represent sounds of that time.

Dutch-I would say that most Americans have heard of  "Deutsch," (pronounced doytsh) for German. Well Dutch is simply the same word with a slight variation in the way it is pronounced. In many language groups, in a number of cases, the letters/sounds "d" and "t" were used sort of interchangeably. This is certainly true within the Germanic languages, and as you'll see further below, the ancestor of "Dutch" had a "t," not a "d." I believe part of the reason for this is, long ago, the sounds of what developed into our more modern sounds were not as distinct as they are (or "supposed" to be) today. Remember, in more modern times languages have developed "standard" forms that are taught in schools, with generally regular spellings and some general pronunciation guidelines, although that certainly doesn't mean that people pronounce words the same, by any stretch of the imagination. Further, the above mentioned "Deutsch" is also pronounced and spelled in a variety of ways in German dialects, including "Teutsch," "Tüütsch" and "Düütsch" (my grandmother pretty much said "Deitsch" =dytsh, with a "y" or long "i" sound). In more modern times, it is easier to define "dialect" as a variation from the standard, school taught language, although even then, not all speakers of a particular language agree what is standard.

For quite some time in history, the people in what we now call The Netherlands (frequently just called Holland by many English speakers), Germany, Austria, parts of Belgium, a part of northern Italy, eastern France, a large part of Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein were referred to as Germans by English speakers, and indeed, the Dutch and the others just listed were a part of the old German Empire. Initially, during the 12th Century, the word was a general term for all of these "Germans;" however, at some point during the 1600s, a form of the pronunciation we use became identified more specifically to people in Holland, which was actually only a part of what is now The Netherlands. Back then it was usually spelled "duutsch." The term goes back to Old High German "duitisc," which had a meaning "of the people or belonging to the people." This notion of belonging to the people came to be applied to the basic common language of these Germanic speakers. (Please note that they didn't all speak exactly alike, as there were many dialects, but back many, many centuries ago, speakers of these various Germanic dialects, including the Anglo-Saxons in England, could still basically understand one another, although undoubtedly at times with difficulty.) The term went back further to Old Germanic "theudo," which meant "popular, of the same people, national (in the sense of related people)." Old English had "theodisc," which likewise meant "belonging to the people," and also referred to the "common Germanic language." Old English also had "theod," which meant "people, nation (in the sense 'related people')." The Old Germanic term went back to Indo European "teuta," which meant "people." Just for the sake of example, Old Lithuanian, an Indo European language related to English further down the family tree, had "tauta," also meaning "people," and Oscan, also related further down the family tree, had "touto," which had the sense "community;" that is, "sense of people together in common." The term was also picked up by Latin and used at times back in the 7th Century to refer to the language of the area of Mercia,* England; that is, Old English. Then it was used just a short time later in Latin to refer to the broad conglomeration of Germanic dialects on the Continent, excluding the north Germanic dialects (these northern dialects became Danish, Icelandic Norwegian and Swedish). This "dutch/deutsch" term for German dialects then was extended to mean the people who spoke the language, and by the 1200s, the term "Diutisklant" was being used to describe the area where these people lived. In case you didn't notice, "Diutisklant" was the original word for the modern "Deutschland;" that is, "Germany."

In English, by the 1600s, the term began to be applied more specifically to "people or things" of  the Netherlands, as that area had become a separate state, independent of the Old German Empire by that time, and a very major rival of England for trade and for colonies in the New World. Remember, New Amsterdam was established in the New World by the Dutch, after breaking bread with the local Indians and offering them some trinkets and beads. New Amsterdam later became a part of what is now New York City. I guess the Indians learned the meaning of eating and "going Dutch." Stop me from laughing too hard!!! To confuse matters more, the people in Holland, in order to show their independence of the German Empire, no longer used the term for themselves or their language (they use "Nederlanders" and "Nederlands"), but continued to apply the term to the people of Germany. This sense was picked up in English, and we still say "Pennsylvania Dutch," who weren't "Dutch," but "Deutsch" from western Germany in the Rhineland area. Hey, even I'm getting confused! Anyway, eventually English speakers settled on "Dutch" for people in Holland/The Netherlands.

German-Having gone through the history of "Dutch/Deutsch," this word should be easier....I hope. The term "Germani" was used by Julius Caesar in his historical writings about a group of related people (tribes) in northwestern Europe. It is assumed that one of those tribes had a similar name for itself, and that Julius just used that "latinized" term for all of these people, but some linguists feel that the term may have come from Celtic, a part of the Indo European language family, and related to Germanic, and thus also to English. Latin speakers back then referred to the Germanic speaking areas collectively as "Germania" (English took this on as "Germany"). In English long ago, the Germans were referred to either as "Almain" or "Dutch." The first is from a Germanic tribe called the "Alemanni," the second, "Dutch," is.....I'm NOT going to get into that again. (Just a note: the Alemanni tribal name gave French their words for Germany and German.) The Germans do NOT use the word "German" for themselves or their language, but rather Deutsch(e) (see above). Further, the Germans do not use a form of the word "Dutch" for the people and language of  the Netherlands, but rather they use "Holländisch" (pronounced "hole-lend-ish), which we English speakers do not use, but of course, we do use "Holland" interchangeably with The Netherlands for the name of the country. German does use the adjective "germanisch" for "Germanic;" that is, relating to all of the Germanic peoples, languages and dialects.

Teuton-This term is not as extensively used as it once was, and I guess I should be glad, because it can also be confusing, because English speakers have frequently used it interchangeably for German or Germanic, but it really means the latter, Germanic. It came from the Teutones, a Germanic tribe from the time before Julius Caesar, but who were called Teutonicus in Old Latin. Linguists feel that it is just another form of "teuta," which meant people (See "Dutch," if you dare, above), from Indo European. In English, it was used to refer to the Germanic languages and the various Germanic tribes; however, just to muddy the waters, from the mid 1800s on, it was also used just for "German." I guess turn about is fair play, as many German speakers mess up the difference between English and British; frequently using British (including the Irish, as the Irish are British, in the sense that they inhabit one of the British Isles) when they mean English, and using English when they mean British. I can attest to this, too. One time years ago in Frankfurt, Germany, I was sitting in the barroom of my favorite restaurant there. The bar had several types of draft beer, including "Guinness Stout" (which is from Ireland, in case you don't know). A German guy at the bar was talking with another German guy seated at a small table near the bar. In Germany, beer glasses almost always have the name of the beer you're being served on the glass, as I believe the various breweries supply them to advertise their products. The guy at the table was drinking Guinness and the other guy asked him what kind of beer it was. He quickly replied, "Englishes Bier." Of course, this means "English beer." I'm sure the Irish would NOT be amused.

Saxon-This comes from Old Germanic "sakhsan," which seems to have meant "someone skilled with a knife or sword, swordsman," as many of the Germanic dialects had a form of the root "sax" to mean a knife, sword or dagger. The belief is that it may ultimately go back to the Indo European root word related to "saw," the cutting instrument. In Old English is was usually spelled "Seaxe." The Saxons were one of the Germanic tribes (and probably the largest contingent) that migrated from NW Europe to Britain in the 400s A.D., and who, along with their other Germanic allies, eventually subdued most of the area now known as England. Many Saxons stayed behind on the Continent, however, and Germany still has two states in existence to this day, called Sachsen-Anhalt and Sachsen, as well as another, "Niedersachsen," or Lower Saxony. Sachsen is translated into English as "Saxony." The Low German dialect of northern Germany is often referred to as "Saxon." The Saxons of England referred to their relatives in northern Germany as "Ealdesaxe;" that is, "Old Saxons." Many English place names bear reference to the Saxons: Sussex, Middlesex, Essex. In many Celtic dialects to this day, a "Saxon" means Englishman. And in Finland, their term for Germany literally means "Land of the Saxons."

Lombards-The Lombards were a Germanic tribe that had a major impact on Italy. They settled in the northern part of Italy, and one of the Italian provinces is named after them, "Lombardia," which English has as "Lombardy." The Old Germanic name of this tribe was "Langgobardoz," which was passed onto Old English as "Langbeardas." Many linguists have taken this to mean "long beards," assuming that they were so named from having extensive facial hair. Other linguists feel that the compound name comes from "lang," which also meant "tall" in times past, but standard English doesn't use it that way anymore (it still has the duel meaning, "long and tall," in German), plus "Bardi," which they assume was the name of a particular Germanic tribe. The idea was that some of these "Bardi" were taller than their contemporaries, and thus the "lang" was added, and it remained as the name for the entire tribe. So, take your pick. When you hear people say about blond Italians in northern Italy, this is because the more commonly dark-haired Latins mixed with various Germanic and Celtic people long ago, and these groups "tended" to have lighter colored hair from what seems to be known of them. Anyway, later in time, a good number of people in the Lombard part of Italy got involved in financial matters, and the term "Lombard" came to mean "bankers, loan dealers and pawnbrokers," besides the original meaning for the particular Germanic tribe or person from the Italian province. This meaning was picked up by French, and from French it was picked up by Low German, Dutch and English, although I dare say in modern times that few English speakers would recognize that meaning. London has a "Lombard Street," which supposedly goes back to the 1500s, because of bankers having set up business there. (From my readings, I can't tell if these bankers may have come to England FROM northern Italy, or whether they were just English bankers, and the "financial" meaning of "Lombard" was applied to them and thus to the street.)

Danes-In history, I guess there have been some GREAT Danes! (And don't HOUND me over that remark, either, dog-gone-it! ) Anyway, many linguists believe there is strong evidence that the term goes back to Old High German "tanar," which meant a "sand bank." (If this theory is correct, there's that "t" and "d" situation again.) Since these North Germanic people tended to live near the sea, where sandy areas are common, that is the notion behind the association with "sand bank." In Old English it was "Dene" (this was plural), but it was used by Englishmen as the term for ALL North Germanic groups, in general. (see "Norse," below) Over time (primarily in the 8th and 9th Centuries), the Danes frequently landed in England, subduing and then even settling in large portions of the eastern and northeastern part of the country. Under influence of their own term for themselves, "Daner," English spelling and pronunciation changed to "Dane." (Unlike the other Germanic languages, the North Germanic languages back then had a tendency to end many words in "r." I don't know why that is, but this word itself is a good example, as English had "Dene," then "Dane," but the Danes had the "r" at the end. Likewise, English had "Viking," German had "Wiking," but North Germanic had "Vikingr.") By the 1700s, the term was being used for a large breed of dog. If you're something of a historian, you might remember the "Danelaw." This term came about in the 9th Century for that part of England under Danish rule. While many Danes had settled in England prior to the Norman Invasion, most remained behind on the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts, and the area became known as Denmark, which of course has the "e" spelling, while in German it is "Dänemark," Low German "Deenmark, Danish itself has "Danmark," as do Norwegian and Swedish, but Icelandic has "Danmörk."

Norse-This term is derived from "north." An Old English word, "Nordman/Nort(h)man" was used for what we now call "Norwegians." The North Germanic term was "norsk." The Dutch used "Noorsch" for Norwegian. The Old English term "Nordman/Nort(h)man" was borrowed by the French dialect spoken along and near the NW coast, across the Channel from England, as "Normand." When the "Northmen" raided into that area in the 8th Century, the Frankish king gave them the territory to settle in, as a sort of ransom payoff to get them to stop raiding into the Paris area (they were sailing up the rivers from the coast). Thus the area became known as "Normandy" and the people became "Normans." Writer Sir Walter Scott seems to be responsible for the term "Norseman," as he used it in his writings, and I therefore take it that there is no record of its use prior to him.

This has gotten more involved than I intended, so I will have to continue with Part Two about various Germanic groups (including the Vandals, the Burgundians, the Franks, the Goths, the Frisians), hopefully in the not too distant future.

* Mercia was "Mierce" in Old English. The word is related to both modern nouns "mark" and to the now rather archaic "march." The latter means "boundary, border." German has the closely related noun (die) Mark, which also means "border area."