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Symbel
Symbel (OE) and sumbl (ON) are Germanic terms for "feast, banquet".
Accounts of the symbel are preserved in the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf (lines 489–675 and 1491–1500), Dream of the Rood (line 141) and Judith (line 15), Old Saxon Heliand (line 3339), and the Old Norse Lokasenna (stanza 8) as well as other Eddic and Saga texts, such as in the Heimskringla account of the funeral ale held by King Sweyn, or in the Fagrskinna.
Paul C. Bauschatz in 1976 suggested that the term reflects a pagan ritual which had a "great religious significance in the culture of the early Germanic people".
The prevalent view today is that Old English symbel, Old Saxon symbal, sumbal (Old High German *sumbal) and Old Norse sumbl, all of which translate roughly as "feast, banquet, (social) gathering", continue a Common Germanic *sumlan "banquet", which would correspond to a PIE *sṃ-lo- "joint meal" or "congregation" (literally, symposium or assembly).
A number of earlier scholars have argued for a borrowing from Latin symbola, Against this derivation (in the case of OE symbel), P.A. Erades argues that these cognates go back to Common Germanic *sumil or *sumal "gathering" (in the last case, with ablaut in the suffix). He explains the Germanic stem *sum- as ultimately deriving from Proto-Indo-European *sṃ- prefix, the zero-grade of ablaut of *sem "one, together". This is the same element which developed into copulative a in Ancient Greek.
Paul Bauschatz appears to accept sum, sam "together", but proposes that the word represents a compound with alu "ale" as its second element (rather than a suffix). This would render the meaning "gathering or coming together of ale".
The Old English noun is usually translated as "feast", and forms various compounds such as symbel-wyn "joy at feasting", symbel-dæg "feast day", symbel-niht "feast-night", symbel-hūs "feast-house, guest-room", symbel-tīd "feast time", symbel-werig "weary of feasting" etc. There is also a derived verb, symblian or symblan, meaning "to feast, caraouse, enjoy one's self". Not to be confused is the unrelated homophone symbel, symble meaning "always, ever".
In Old English poetry, especially Beowulf, feasts could be instrumental occasions to bind the community, secure the loyalty of warriors and to bolster their determination to perform heroic deeds.
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Symbel
Symbel (OE) and sumbl (ON) are Germanic terms for "feast, banquet".
Accounts of the symbel are preserved in the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf (lines 489–675 and 1491–1500), Dream of the Rood (line 141) and Judith (line 15), Old Saxon Heliand (line 3339), and the Old Norse Lokasenna (stanza 8) as well as other Eddic and Saga texts, such as in the Heimskringla account of the funeral ale held by King Sweyn, or in the Fagrskinna.
Paul C. Bauschatz in 1976 suggested that the term reflects a pagan ritual which had a "great religious significance in the culture of the early Germanic people".
The prevalent view today is that Old English symbel, Old Saxon symbal, sumbal (Old High German *sumbal) and Old Norse sumbl, all of which translate roughly as "feast, banquet, (social) gathering", continue a Common Germanic *sumlan "banquet", which would correspond to a PIE *sṃ-lo- "joint meal" or "congregation" (literally, symposium or assembly).
A number of earlier scholars have argued for a borrowing from Latin symbola, Against this derivation (in the case of OE symbel), P.A. Erades argues that these cognates go back to Common Germanic *sumil or *sumal "gathering" (in the last case, with ablaut in the suffix). He explains the Germanic stem *sum- as ultimately deriving from Proto-Indo-European *sṃ- prefix, the zero-grade of ablaut of *sem "one, together". This is the same element which developed into copulative a in Ancient Greek.
Paul Bauschatz appears to accept sum, sam "together", but proposes that the word represents a compound with alu "ale" as its second element (rather than a suffix). This would render the meaning "gathering or coming together of ale".
The Old English noun is usually translated as "feast", and forms various compounds such as symbel-wyn "joy at feasting", symbel-dæg "feast day", symbel-niht "feast-night", symbel-hūs "feast-house, guest-room", symbel-tīd "feast time", symbel-werig "weary of feasting" etc. There is also a derived verb, symblian or symblan, meaning "to feast, caraouse, enjoy one's self". Not to be confused is the unrelated homophone symbel, symble meaning "always, ever".
In Old English poetry, especially Beowulf, feasts could be instrumental occasions to bind the community, secure the loyalty of warriors and to bolster their determination to perform heroic deeds.