I have read recently that the words "heal" and "holy," as well as the word "whole," are all derived from the same base word (Latin? Greek?). Can anyone confirm that for me and give me more information? I haven't been able to find derivations in the dictionaries I have looked at.

English

Heal, whole, holy, hail: All from the same IE root; all from Old English except hail which is from Old Norse.

http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE198.html

Welcome aBoard Blawren!

all from Old English except hail which is from Old Norse.

Given that the Vikings not only invaded the Mother Country but, in many instances, settled on British soil, it is no surprise to find cross-over words between Old English and Old Norse.

cross-over words between Old English and Old Norse

According to one expert, whose last name is Shippey and who was featured in Episode two of the PBS series, The Story of English, there were not only cross-over words but the wholesale dumping of case ending in nouns was a result of the mixing of Old English and Old Norse. Common roots with drastically different case endings resulted in the form of the language we have today.

Shippey is quite right, even more so when one looks at the dialects spoken in Lincolnshire, Yokshire and along the Northumbrian coast. For fun (a bit of which this board could use right now), look at the number of villages in these counties were the town's name ends in either -ton or -by. "Tun" was the Old Norse word for village and "By" the Old Norse word for town. Those fellows not only raped, sacked and pillaged, but put down roots, as well, both domestic and linguistic.

The Story of English went into some depths (for about a ten minute segment) about the various place name markers from English and Norse, even mentioning some town names that were half Norse and half English. Also mentioned a number of words that had come from ON, some peculiar to the local dialects and some common in standard English. It's definitely a series worth checking out. The lovely AnnaS and I have been grabbing episodes from the library as they have been available.

dialects spoken in Lincolnshire, Yokshire and along the Northumbrian coast

Sussex (where dxb and I live) was, of course, the "South Saxons" county once upon a time. But there are still quite a few Vikings in these parts - drinking messily from dirty horns, banging on tables, singing raucously late at night and eventually missing the last longboat back . Although come to think of it, it's suddenly become more quiet now that the World Cup has started.

"Tun" was the Old Norse word for village and "By" the Old Norse word for town
Very interesting. Thank you.
I was wondering how "Brighton" (in Sussex again) fit here, but obviously that's actually a contraction of Brighthelmstone.
Lot of co(o)mbes (Saxon "little valleys") around the South Downs. Something to do with all the hills.
However Barcombe, where I live, is thought to derive from the Saxon bir + camp, i.e. barley field.

Bir was very important to Saxons. Can't think why.

Oh, if you're buying, mine's a pint, cheers mate.

Hmmm. Just a wee digression from the Thread's starting point there.

Bir was very important to Saxons. Can't think why.

Oh, if you're buying, mine's a pint, cheers mate.

Hmmm. Just a wee digression from the Thread's starting point there.

Digression? What digression? We started with "holy," which we associate with "spirit," so Bir, which is spirits, flows naturally enough.

You mean we are supposed to go in some kind of order here? NOW you tell me!

The "order" in which posts seem to progress on this board is very much like the manner in which I seem to accomplish things around the vicarage: Setting out to accomplish Project A, discovering that I need Tool B to do it, going on a search for Tool B which requires me to clean up Mess C, finding Something D, for which I had previously been looking in the midst of Mess C, doing whatever it was that I was going to do with Something D, and then being called to supper without having done the least part of Project A.

It all makes really good sense, if one follows the connections.

Oh my! which requires me to clean up Mess C,! A man who cleans up messes!?!?!?!?!?

the manner in which I seem to accomplish things ... [details] ... and then being called to supper without having done the least part

Sound familiar. Are you my long-lost twin brother?

A man who cleans up messes!?!?!?

Note: when required

But I know for a fact that it's not just blokes who create a set of messy blind-spots that only become visible (to the individual) when there is absolutely no alternative.

Father, you have such a realistic assessment of how things actually work, you would probably make a superb Project Manager.

Are you my long-lost twin brother?

In that I am too fat, too dumb and too ugly, I pray that you are not!

And who better to pray for you than the good Father!

The "order" in which posts seem to progress on this board is very much like the manner in which I seem to accomplish things around the vicarage: Setting out to accomplish Project A, discovering that I need Tool B to do it, going on a search for Tool B which requires me to clean up Mess C, finding Something D, for which I had previously been looking in the midst of Mess C, doing whatever it was that I was going to do with Something D, and then being called to supper without having done the least part of Project A.

Father Steve, thanks for perfectly describing what happens when I garden, no wonder my borders and beds are always in a state of "work in progress".