printcristalle
noun,
f.,
n-decl.,
hapax legomenon
Type: plant
Last Update: 26.08.2011 10:09
Meaning Last Update: 24.04.2011 14:49
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A: plant: foreign
Psyllium Mill., psyllium, Flohsame
Comment Last Update: 14.05.2012 18:03
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Comment on (A): Psyllium Mill., psyllium, Flohsame
Research Literature
BT:
Bosworth, Joseph.
An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary. Ed. by Thomas Northcote Toller. Reprint 1973. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882.
BW II:
Bierbaumer, Peter.
Der botanische Wortschatz des Altenglischen. Grazer Beiträge zur Englischen Philologie 2. Bern, Frankfurt am Main, München: Lang, 1976.
DOE:
Cameron, Angus, Ashley Crandell Amos, Antonette di Paolo Healey, et al. (eds.).
Dictionary of Old English (A to G). CD-Rom. Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies for the Dictionary of Old English Project, 2008.
LA, Lor:
Grattan, John Henry Grafton, and Charles Singer.
Anglo-Saxon Magic and Medicine. London: Oxford Univ. Press, 1952.
LA:
Cockayne, Oswald Thomas (ed.).
"[Lacnunga] Recipies." In: Leechdoms, Wortcunning and Starcraft of Early England. Being a Collection of Documents, for the Most Part never before Printed, Illustrating the History of Sience in this Country before the Norman Conquest. Vol. 3. Rev. Ed. by Charles Singer. London: Holland Press, 1961. 2-81.
LB:
Leonhardi, Günther.
Kleinere angelsächsische Denkmäler I. Bibliothek der ags. Prosa VI. Hamburg: Grand, 1905.
OED:
Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2009. .
André, Jacques.
Les noms de plantes dans la Rome antique. Paris: Société d'édition 'les belles lettres', 1985.
Grein, Christian-Wilhelm-Michael (ed.).
Bibliothek der angelsächsischen Poesie. Göttingen: Wigand, 1864.
MS London, British Library, Harley 585.
Pettit, Edward, (ed. and trans.).
Anglo-Saxon Remedies, Charms and Prayers from British Library MS Harley 585: the 'Lacnunga'. Vol. I: Introduction, Text, Translation, and Appendices. Vol. II: Commentary and Bibliography. Mellen Critical Editions and Translations. 6A and 6B. Lewiston, Queenston and Lampeter: Mellen, 2001.
Sauer, Hans.
Patterns of loan-influence on the Medieval English plant names, with special reference to the influence of Greek. In: Foreign Influences on Medieval English, Eds. Jacek Fisiak, and Magdalana Bator. Studies in English medieval language and literature. 28. Frankfurt/Main: Lang, 2011. 55-76.
Storms, Godfrid (ed.).
Anglo-Saxon Magic. Reprint of the 1948 ed. published by M. Nijhoff, The Hague. Norwood, Pa: Norwood Editions, 1975.
[1]:
This is a perfect example of how problematic the use of vernacular plant names for identiyfying OE plant names can become, as they lead in various different (and often wrong) directions.
[2]:
The context indicates a plant name: Nim cristallan 7 disman 7 sidewaran 7 cassuc 7 finolnim þonne 7 lege þa wyrta ealle in þæt wæter.
We cannot determine the genus exactly, as we only have the asg. recorded. As we are probably dealing with a plant name I tend towards identifying this form as f. But cf. BT s.v. cristalla: "m: [...] I. crystal [...] II.the herb crystallium".
Grattan / Singer translate 'cristalan' and note (1951,l08,A.8): "Cristalan is presumably the CRYSTALLION of Pliny, Hist.nat. v.80, an unidentifiable plant with many synonyms." S.v. CRYSTALLION Andrè (1985) identifyes it as name for Plantago psyllium L. and P. cynops L.
Pettit (2001,1, glossary) suggests: (?) Plantago arenaria Waldst. & Kit., branched plantain; (?) or a species of fleawort or fleabane; the latter is also the identification suggested by the DOE (s.v. cristalle, cristalla).
A possible source provided by the DOE is "PLIN. Hist.nat. 25.11.90 PSYLLION ALII CYNOIDES, ALII CRYSTALLION [...] APPELLANT"; André writes on CYNOIS: "acc. CYNOIDA [...] Plantago psyllium L. et P. cynops L.".
Unfortunately these suggestions are a confusing mix-up of different vernacular and botanical plant names:
Considering this list, the safest identification we can probably attempt for cristalle is 'Psyllium Mill.' All other explanations (Storms 1975,321: "various plants, especially Inula Conyza and Plantago Psyllium", Pettit and the DOE) fail due to the polysemy of the ModE plant names.[1] The Plantago afra of the OED (s.v. psyllium) is a synonym for Psyllium afrum (L.) Mirb.