Antonio Sciarretta's Toponymy Ancient Toponymy

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Illyricum

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The Roman province of Illyricum was bounded by the Ras^a river (toward Venetia), the river Drin (toward Macedonia), and the Adriatic sea. Toward Pannonia and Moesia in the interior the boundaries are less clear but they should have followed the mountain ranges of Velebit, Bosnia, and Montenegro.

From the river Ras^a to the river Zrmanja and then to the Krka, the land was inhabited by Iapydes and Liburni, from the Krka to the river Neretva, it was called Dalmatia, and from the Neretva to the Drin, Illyria proper (Barbara or Romana).

Common remarks: the place-names have been put in the nominative case, an asterisk * means not attested, reconstructed form. The late place-names of probable Latin origin have not been included. The IE roots are in the form given by Pokorny's Indogermanische Wörterbuch. The links will be active when the single pages will be published, see the main page. For any comment, suggestion, email me.

Liburnia

Aenona

• Place: Nin, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Aenona (Ptol., Plin.)
• Etymology: According to Udolph, the stem *aen- is the A-language counterpart of the IE root *ein-, an extension of *ei- 'to go'. Thus the name could be compared with hydronyms like Aenus fl. (Germania). The suffix -ona seems to be typically Liburnian.

Adra

• Place: not identified
• Name: Adra (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The name, cited by Udolph also, is not confirmed by other sources than Ptolemy. However the resemblance with Adria (Venetia) is striking.

Albius m.

• Place: not identified, Slovenia or Croatia
• Name: Albius m. (Strab.)
• Etymology: Clearly meaning 'white mount', from a local adjective from the IE root *albho- 'white'.

Alvona

• Place: Labin/Albona, county Istarska, Croatia
• Name: Alvona (Ptol., Plin., Peut.) Albona (Guid.)
• Etymology: The suffix is typically Liburnian. The stem could be reconducted to an U-stem *alu- of the very productive IE root *al- 'to grow, nourish'. Alternatively, it may be compared with Latin alveus 'hole, river bed', which is explained by Pokorny as a metathesis from the IE root *aul- 'tube, hole'.

Arba

• Place: island and town Rab/Arbe, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Arba (Ptol.) Arba i. (Plin.)
• Etymology: According to some Albanian scholar (Konitza), the name is related to 'Alba' or 'Arba, an ancient version of Albania, and it comes from Illyrian arb 'dark, green, wooded'. But possibly it was a local variant of the IE root *albho- 'white'.

Argyruntum

• Place: Starigrad of Starigrad-Paklenica, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Argyruntum (Ptol., Plin.) Argeruntum (Guid.)
• Etymology: The name is formally identical to Greek arguros 'glittering', which is from the IE root *ar(e)g'- 'glittering, white', from which various names of 'silver' also derived. The ending -untum is found in several Illyrian and Apulian place names.

Arupium

• Place: Prozor of Otoc^ac, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Arupium (Peut.) Arupini (Strab.) Aruccia (?) (Ptol.)
• Etymology: If Aruccia is the same town, it was compared by Villar with Arucci (Baetica). The version Arupium may be analyzed as *ar-up-, with the second part of the compound that is likely to be compared with the variant *up- of the IE root *ap- 'water, river', which seems to be very productive for hydronyms and to have various counterparts in the Baltic. The first part of the compound may be a zero-grade form of the IE root *er- 'to move'.

Asseria

• Place: Benkovac, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Asseria (Plin., inscr.) Aseria (Peut.)
• Etymology: To be compared with Assorus (Sicilia) and tentatively interpreted as a compound meaning 'dry stream', from the IE roots *as- 'to burn', and *ser- 'to flow'. According to others (Cimochowski), the initial as- would be from the *ak'- 'sharp', and that would reveal the satem nature of the language of the Liburnians.

Assessia

• Place: Bribir of Vinodolska, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Assessia (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The first part is likely to have the same meaning as in Asseria, i.e., 'dry'. The second part of the compound may be compared easily with Latin sessio 'seat', which is a nominal construct *sed-ti- from the IE root *sed- 'to seat'. Thus the overall meaning could have been 'dry seat', i.e., 'dry place'.

Ausancalio

• Place: not identified (inner Liburnia)
• Name: Ausancali (Ptol.) Ausancalio (Peut.)
• Etymology: Tentatively, the ending calio may be compared with Latin callum 'cockle', and with a Gaulish word *callio possibly meaning 'stone', both from an IE root reconstructed as *kal- 'hard, blister'. Then the first term of the compound could be similar to the river name *Ausentus fl. (Samnium), i.e., from the IE root *aues- 'to shine', or *aus- 'to draw water', with the participe marker *-ent- represented by *-ant-. The overall meaning is reconstructed as *ausant-kalio, 'the rock by the shining (or the pouring) (stream)'.

Avendo

• Place: Brlog of Otoc^ac, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Vendum (Strab.) Avendo (It. Ant.) Vendum (Peut.)
• Etymology: The spelling Vend- should be preferred since the initial a- could be a later Latin prapeposition agglutinated. Tentatively the name could be related to the nasal form of the IE root *ueid- 'to see, know', like in the Gaulish adjective *vindos 'white'. Actually, the town belonged to the Iapodes, often related to the neighbouring Celtic Carni. Less likely, if the original spelling was Avend-, the IE root *au(e)- 'to flow' could be invoked, more precisely, a participe form *auent- 'the flowing'.

Blanona

• Place: not proveably Biograd na Moru, county Zadarska, Croatia (probably inner Liburnia)
• Name: Blanona (Ptol.) Blandona (?)
• Etymology: Possibly the non-Venetic counterpart of the name Flanona or, if the spelling Blandona is correct, derived from the IE root *bhlendh- 'pale, reddish'. The meaning would have been similar, and in any case consistent with the meaning of the present-day Biograd 'white town'. The -an- in the name comes from a sonant n. Compare with Blanda in a possibly related domain.

Clambetae

• Place: Cvijina Gradina of Obrovac, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Clambetae (Peut.)
• Etymology: Compare with Clampetia (Bruttium) in an Italic domain. This toponym belongs to a series of striking similarities between Liburnian and Eastern-Italic placenames (see e.g., Lacinium, Ortopla). It should thus be attributed to the Venetic stratum.

Flanona

• Place: Plomin/Fianona of Labin/Albona, county Istarska, Croatia
• Name: Flanona (Ptol., Plin.)
• Etymology: Another possibly Venetic name showin an initial f-, which is a distinguishing mark. Compare with Blanona, its non-Venetic counterpart, and with *Flamonia (Venetia). These are possibly from the IE root *bhle-, a variant of *bhel(e)- 'shining, white'.

Fulfinium

• Place: Omis^alj, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Fulfinium (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The structure of the name recalls that of Fulginium (Umbria). The initial f- is Venetic, akin to Italic. The intermediate f also should derive from an aspirated voiced stop.

Iader

• Place: Zadar, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Iader (Ptol., Plin., Mel., It. Mar.) Iadora (Guid.)
• Etymology: According to Georgiev, the name is explained as *ioudh-ro-, from the IE root *ieudh- 'to move swiftly, to fight'. A different possibility is that the place name reflects the extension *ad-ro- of the IE root *ad(u)- 'water current', in a language where initial *a->ia-. This language could have been akin to Daco-Mysian, where this phonetic development has been postulated. The same development could have been responsible for the pair Apuli vs. Iapygi in Apulia, a region highly related to the Illyrian domain. For the distinction of a Daco-Mysian stratum and a Liburnian/Venetic one, compare with Adra.

*Lacinium

• Place: not identified
• Name: *Lacinium from Lacinienses (Plin.)
• Etymology: To be compared with Lacinium pr. (Bruttium).

Lopsica

• Place: Lopar of Novi Vinodolski, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Lopsica (Ptol., Plin.) Ampsi (Scyl.)
• Etymology: The town took its name from that of the tribe Lopsi, which recalls the Greek gloss lops 'chlamys' (Hes.)

Monetium

• Place: possibly Brinje, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Monetium (Strab.)
• Etymology: Clearly belonging to an O-language stratum, the name also shows a typical suffix -et-. A possible explaination is from the IE root *men- 'to tower', i.e., 'the towering (place)'.

Metulum

• Place: Vinic^ica of Josipdol, county Karlovac^ka, Croatia
• Name: Metulum (Strab., Dio Cass.) Metulium (Appian.)
• Etymology: Possibly related to the IE root *met- "in the middle'.

Nedinum

• Place: Nadin of Zadar, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Nedinum (Ptol., Plin., Peut.)
• Etymology: A number of hydronyms showing the stem *ned-/nid- are explained with an IE root *ned- 'to sound, roar' or another root *neid- 'to flow, stream'. According to Udolph, the root to be reconstructed is the latter.

Oeneus fl.

• Place: river Rjecina, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Oeneus fl. (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Likely an O-grade form of the extension *ei-n- of the IE root *ei- 'to go', which is found in many hydronyms like Aenus fl. (Germania). Since the name Oen(e)us contrasts with the A-form found in Aenona, the former could either be a Grecized version, influenced by the mythical character of Oeneus, king of Calydon, or the Venetic (O-language) counterpart of the A-language name.

*Olbona

• Place: not identified
• Name: *Olbona from Olbonenses (Plin.)
• Etymology: The name, if correct, shows a typical ending -ona found in both sides of the Adriatic, and an O-language stem, which may tentatively compared with Greek olbos 'luck' or even with the IE root *albho- 'white'. Notice that the shift *a>o could have been Slavic.

Ortopla

• Place: Stinica of Senj, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Ortopla (Ptol.) Ortoplinia (Plin.) Osi-Pedetae (Scyl.)
• Etymology: The name is maybe a compound, with the first term that may be compared with Ortona (Samnium) in a related domain, and the second term that is likely an appellative meaning 'town'. This derives from the IE root reconstructed as *pel- 'full, to fill, to pour, town'.

Senia

• Place: Senj, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Senia (Ptol., Plin., Peut.) Attienites (Scyl.)
• Etymology: The name may be compared with those of Sena Gallica (Umbria) and Sena (Etruria). The most likely meaning seems to be that of 'the old (town)', from the IE root *sen(o)- 'old'.

Stulpi

• Place: possibly Slunj, county Karlovac^ka, Croatia
• Name: Stulpi (Ptol., Plin.) Stolpum (Porph.)
• Etymology: The name may be compared with Stulni (Apulia) and derived from the zero-grade of the IE root *stel- 'to put, place', with the development of sonant l into ul that should be regarded as Illyrian.

Tarsatica

• Place: Trsat of Rijeka, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Tarsatica (Ptol., Plin.) Tharsaticum (Guid.) Idassa (Scyl.)
• Etymology: Possibly from a tribe name *Tarsati, like Lopsica is from Lopsi. In turn, Tarsati may derive from an older hydronym, to be compared with Tarsium (Pannonia), Tarracina (Latium), and thus with the IE root *ters- 'dry, thirst'.

Tedanius fl.

• Place: river Zrmanja, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Tedanius fl. (Ptol.) Telavius fl. (Plin.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Tediastum

• Place: not identified
• Name: Tediastum (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The stem seems to be kin to Tedanius fl. The ending -asto- has some counterparts in Greece and Southern Illyria.

Terponus

• Place: not identified, county Karlovac^ka, Croatia
• Name: Terponus (Appian.)
• Etymology: Tentatively related to the extension *(s)terp- of the IE root *(s)ter- 'stiff, solid'. Clearly originated from an O-language like that of the Iapodes should have been.

Titius fl.

• Place: river Krka, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Titus fl. (Ptol.) Titius fl. (Plin.)
• Etymology: Similarly to Titus fl. (Lugdunensis), the origin could be the IE root *tei- 'to melt, dissipate, decay'. One Greek name for the river was Catarbates (Scyl.), i.e., the 'steeply-falling'.

Vegium

• Place: close to Karlobag, county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Vegia (Ptol.) Vegium (Plin.)
• Etymology: Likely related to the IE root *ueg'- 'fresh, strong' with the meaning of 'the strong' or 'the guard post'. This etymology would confirm that the language of Liburnia was not a satem language.

Volcera

• Place: Bakar, county Primorsko-Goranjska, Croatia
• Name: Volcera (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Similarly to Volci (Etruria) and Volcei (Lucania), the name may be derived from the IE root *uelk- 'wet, damp'.

Isles near Liburnia

Absorrus i., Absortium, Apsyrtides i.

• Place: island Los^inj/Lussino (Absorrus i.), the same with island Cres/Cherso (Apsyrtides i.), Osor of Mali Los^inj (Absortium), county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Apsorrus i. (Ptol.) Absortium (Plin.) Apsyrtides i. (Strab.)
• Etymology: Compare with the name Absyrtus, brother of Medea in the myth of the Argonauts, and with the related Absarus fl. in Colchis. Likely, the name derives from the IE root *ap- 'water, river' or from the concurrent IE root *ab- 'water, river'. A possible reconstruction is *abs-stor-io 'water land', which could explain both the forms with -rr-<*-ri- and the metathesized forms with *-rt-. The compund second term would thus be an O-grade of the IE root *(s)ter- 'stiff, solid'. This etymology requires a language that preserved mobile *s- and that exhibited the shift *ri>rr like Messapian.

Crepsa i.

• Place: island Cres/Cherso, county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Crepsa i. (Ptol.) Crexi i. (Plin.)
• Etymology: The name may be alanlyzed as *krep-sa, with the stem that possibly reflects the extension *(s)ker-p- of the IE root *(s)ker- 'to cut'. The name has been long compared by the pan-illyrists with Albanian karpe 'rock'.

Curicta i., Curicum

• Place: island Krk (Curicta i.), Krk (Curicum), county Primorsko-Goranska, Croatia
• Name: Curicta i. (Ptol., Plin., Caes.) Cyrictica i. (Strab.) Curica i. (Peut.)
• Etymology: A tentative explaination may be from a compound *kur-_ekw- 'island of the north wind', from a word meaning 'north wind' derived from the IE root *(s)k'euero- 'north, north wind', and the zero-grade form of the root *akwa- 'water, river'. In this case, the centum feature of the language spoken in Liburnia would be confirmed.

Fertina i.

• Place: not identified
• Name: *Fertina i. from Fertinates (Plin.)
• Etymology: Possibly to be compared with Dertona (Liguria), that is, from the IE root *dher- 'to hold, support', in a language where *dh>f like in Italic. This language could likely have been Venetic.

Gissa i., Cissa

• Place: island Pag (Gissa i.), Caska of Novalja (Cissa), county Lic^ko-Senjska, Croatia
• Name: Cissa i., Gissa i. (Plin.)
• Etymology: It is not clear whether it is the same as Cissa i. (Histria). The variant with initial g may be explained with the IE root *geis-, an extension of *gei- 'to turn, bend'. Stephanus Byzantinus mentions a Phrygian word gissa 'stone', also explained with the IE root *g'eis- 'gravel'. If the latter is the origin of the placename Gissa, this must have been happened in a centum-language.

Lissa i.

• Place: island Dugi Otok, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Lissa i. (Plin.)
• Etymology: See under Lissus.

Dalmatia

Adrium m.

• Place: mountain range Dinara Planina, Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Adrium m. (Strab.)
• Etymology: Possibly the name is related to Sanskrit adri 'stone', which reflects a long sonant nasal *n_ed-ri-, from the dubious IE root *end- 'stone'. Therefore, it is not related to the name of the Adriatic sea and to Adria (Venetia)

Aequum

• Place: Citluk of Sinj, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Aequum (Ptol., Peut., It. Ant.)
• Etymology: The name has exact counterparts in Aequum Tuticum (Hirpinia) and Aequum Faliscum (Etruria) and in the Latin word aequum 'plain'. Since Aequum was a Roman colony, founded by the emperor Claudius, a Latin origin of the name is likely.

Aleta

• Place: not identified
• Name: Aleta (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The name is not confirmed by other sources than Ptolemy. However the resemblance with Aletium (Apulia) is striking. Another Aleta is mentioned by Ptolemy in Sicily. A town Halata (Peut.) was in present-day Montenegro. These long-range resemblances, and the comparison with Baltic hydronyms, were among the strongest arguments of the "pan-Illyrian" scholars.

Andetrium

• Place: Gornji Muc^ of Muc^, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Andecrium (Ptol.) Andetrium (Plin.) Andretium (Strab., Peut.)
• Etymology: The name recalls various Gaulish placenames compounded with the intensive prefix ande, which is from IE *n_e-dhi-, an extension of *en- 'in'. Alternatively, Andetrium could be explained as a deverbal noun from the IE root *andh- 'to grow, bloom, blossom', possibly meaning 'field' or something similar.

Arauzona

• Place: Velika Mrdakovica of Vodice, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Arauzona (Ptol.) Arausiona (Guid.)
• Etymology: The name may be compared with Arausio (Narbonensis) and Araurus fl. (Narbonensis). These are possibly compounds with an prefix *ar- that could be the zero-grade reflex of the hydronimic IE root *er- 'to move'. The stem could be possibly derived from the IE root *aus- 'to draw water'.

Aronia, Mucurum

• Place: Makarska, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Aronia (Peut., Rav.) Aronix (Guid.) Mucurum (late antiquity source) Mucrum (Rav., Porph.)
• Etymology: The former name can be tentatively reconducted to the IE root *er- 'to move'. The latter is likely related to the IE root *meuk- 'to slide, slip' and thus have designated a 'wet, swampy place'. An indication of the linguistic stratum may be given from the suffix -ur- representing a sonant *r.

Bariduum

• Place: not identified, probably in Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Bariduum (Peut.)
• Etymology: Unknown. Tentatively, it could be compared with Germanic words for 'border, edge', which are from the IE root *bheredh- 'to cut, board'.

Bathinus fl.

• Place: river Bosna, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Bathinus fl. (Vell. Pat.)
• Etymology: The hydronym belongs to a series *bat that includes Batinus fl. (Picenum), Bathis fl. (Sicilia), Bathynias fl. (Thracia). An hydronymic stem *bat- may be assumed, but its origin is unknown. Possibly, it is related to the IE root *bhedh- 'to pierce, dig', from whence also Padus fl. (Liguria), with a different dissimilation of the aspirated stops. However, the presence of aspirated t in Bathinus fl. is problematic.

Bigeste

• Place: Humac of Ljubus^ki, canton Zapadnohercegovac^ki, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Bigeste (Peut.) Biston (Guid.)
• Etymology: Possibly a compound *bhigwes-ste 'clear place', from the IE root *bheigw- 'to shine'. Compare with Bigerra (Tarraconensis)

Billubium

• Place: Lokvic^ic^i, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Billubium (Peut.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Bistua Vetus, Bistua Nova

• Place: Varvara of Prozor-Rama, canton Hercegovac^ko-Neretvanski (Bistua Vetus), possibly Zenica, canton Zenic^ko-Dobojski (Bistua Nova), Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Bistue Vetus, Bistue (Peut.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Burnum

• Place: Ivos^evci of Kistanje, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Burnum (Ptol., Plin.)
• Etymology: Possibly a construct *bh_er-no- 'mouth' from the IE root *bher- 'to scrape, cut'. The meaning of the placename is thus 'mouth (of a valley, a river, etc.)'. Another possible meaning is that of 'cavity, crevice, gap'.

Collentum, Collentum i.

• Place: Gradina of Murter (Collentum), island Murter (Collentum i.), county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Collentum (Ptol.) Colentum i. (Plin.) Celentum (Rav.)
• Etymology: Likely to be compared with Latin collis 'hill' (the settlement was situated at the feet of a hill), which is from the IE root *kel- 'to tower, be higher, hill'.

Corinium

• Place: Donji Karin of Benkovac, county Zadarska, Croatia
• Name: Corinium (Ptol., Plin.)
• Etymology: The name has counterparts in other O-language domains, such as Corinium (Britannia), Corinum (Hirpinia), Cora (Latium), and Coria (Britannia). A possible interpretation is from the IE root *(s)ker- 'to cut'.

Delminium

• Place: not proveably Duvno, canton Zapadnohercegovac^ki, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Delminium (Ptol.) Dalmium (Strab.)
• Etymology: To be compared (Georgiev) with Dalmisium and with other place-names showing an initial *delm-/dalm- (the latter form being a zero-grade variant of the former). This stem has been long recognized as related to Albanian delme 'sheep', which is from an l-extension of the IE root *dhe(i)- 'to suck'.

Drinus fl.

• Place: river Drina, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Drinus fl. (Ptol., Peut.) Drino fl. (Plin.) Arion fl. (Scyl.)
• Etymology: see under Drilo fl..

Enderum

• Place: not identified (inland Dalmatia)
• Name: Enderum (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Tentatively compared with Endidae (Venetia) and with the dubious IE root *end- 'stone'.

Epetium

• Place: Stobrec^ of Split, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Epetium (Ptol., Plin., Peut.)
• Etymology: The initial ep- could be a preposition epi 'by', compare with Epidaurum, or possibly the local name for the 'horse', to be compared with Celtic epos. The ending is common in the Illyrian domain, see Andetrium and Aletium (Apulia).

Ludrum

• Place: Lovrec', county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Ludrum (late antiquity source)
• Etymology: Usually (Pokorny, etc.) related to Greek luthron 'defilement' and thus to the IE root *leu- 'dirt'. The name is often compared by the pan-illyrists with Albanian lum 'mud', which is from the same root above.

Nareste

• Place: possibly close to Dugi Rat, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Nareste (Plin.) Nerente ? (Guid.)
• Etymology: A formation with the locative suffix -ste, from a stem that may have the same origin as in Naro fl..

Narona

• Place: Vid of Metkovic', county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Narona (Ptol., Plin., Mel., Cic., Peut., Guid.)
• Etymology: A town on the Naro fl.

Nestus fl.

• Place: possibly a different name for river Cetina
• Name: Nestus fl. (Scyl.)
• Etymology: According to Pokorny, the hydronym reflects the IE root *ned- 'to sound, roar' as a feature of the river's waters.

Ninia

• Place: Spas of Knin, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Ninia (Strab.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Oneum, *Almo

• Place: Omis^, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Oneum (Plin., Peut., Guid.) Onaeum (Ptol.) *Almo (inferred from the survival of the name)
• Etymology: Oneum is from another O-language name, without clear counterparts. The later name *Almo is considered by Skok as related to a *Dalmisium (possibly reconstructed from the Venetian name of the town, Almissa) which would be a clear countepart of Delminium. However, *alm- is a known toponymical stem, explained by Pokorny as an extension *alm- of the IE root *al- 'to grow, nourish', and found also in Alma fl. (Etruria) and Almus fl. (Thracia).

Osinium

• Place: Sinj, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: inferred from the survival of the name (?) Sinotium (Strab.)
• Etymology: Like for other hydronyms and place names showing the *os- stem, two possible derivations are from the IE root *aues- 'to shine' and *ous- 'mouth'.

Pasinum

• Place: Padjene of Ervenik, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Pasinum (Plin.) Pazin(...) (inscr.)
• Etymology: A possible Slavic etymology (thus implying an earlier Slavic presence in the interior of Dalmatia and, possibly, Liburnia): from the IE root *pak'- (*pag'-) 'to repair, strengthen', with *k'>s or *g'>z) as in satem languages, and in particular Slovenian paz^ 'gap, groove'. In this respect, the variant Pacinum of Pucinum (Histria) could have been a centum (i.e., Venetic) counterpart.

Pelva

• Place: Kablic of Livno, canton Zapadnohercegovac^ki, Bosnia and Hercegovina
• Name: Pelva (It. Ant.)
• Etymology: Likely derived as *pel_e-u-a from the IE root *pel(e)- 'full, to fill, to pour, town' or *pel- 'wide and flat'.

Pituntium

• Place: Podstrana, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Pituntium (Ptol.) Petuntium (Plin.)
• Etymology: The name may be compared with Pitinum (Samnium), in a closely related domain, which could be derived from the IE root *peit-, an extension of *pei- 'fat, milk'. The ending -untum may reflect the zero-grade form of the IE suffix *-uent- 'rich of'. The development of sonant n into un seems typical of Central Illyria and its counterparts in Apulia.

Promona

• Place: Tepljuh of Drnis^ or Promina, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Promona (Strab., Peut.)
• Etymology: Another name ending with the typical Illyrian suffix -ona. But maybe in this case the name should be analyzed as *pro-mon, i.e., 'in front of the hill', from the praeposition *pro 'before, in front of', and an appellative reflecting the IE root *men- 'to tower'.

Salona

• Place: Solin, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Salonae (Ptol.) Salona (Plin., Mel., Peut., It. Mar., Guid.) Salo (Strab.)
• Etymology: Possibly derived from the very productive IE root *sal- 'salt, salty water', as meaning 'the maritime (town)'. However, a concurrent possibility to many of the names showing the stem *sal- consists of a comparison with Lithuanian sala 'town' and Old High German sal 'dwelling', after which an IE root was reconstructed as *sel-.

Scardona

• Place: Skradin, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Scardona (Ptol., Plin., Strab., Peut., Guid.)
• Etymology: Likely related to Scardus m. (Moesia), Lithuanian skardus 'cliffy, scarped', and thus to the IE root *(s)ker-d(h)-, an extension of *(s)ker- 'to cut'. The meaning is thus '(town on the) scarped (place)'.

Sicum

• Place: not provably S^ibenik, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Sicum (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Formally, it could represent an appellative derived from the IE root *sei-kw-, an extension of *sei- 'to be damp, to drip'.

Siparuntum

• Place: not identified
• Name: Siparuntum (Ptol.)
• Etymology: The stem has an exact counterpart in Sipparis (Histria) and in the Gaulish Siparis fl., explained by Pokorny as derived from the IE root *seikw- 'to spill, pour, draft'. The ending -unt- is compatible with the postulated 'Illyrian' phonetics and has several counterparts in the 'Illyrian' stratum of Apulia.

Tariona

• Place: not provably Drvenik Veli of Split, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Tariona (Plin.)
• Etymology: The island was known in mediaeval times as Zirona and variants. Pliny mentions also a tribe Tariotes, from which the town could have taken its name. In turn, Tariotes may derive from an older hydronym *Tarius, to be compared with Tarus fl. (Cispadana) and thus with the IE root *ter- 'to cross, transgress, to stay'.

Tilurius fl., Tilurium

• Place: river Cetina (Tilurius fl.), Gardun of Trilj (Tilurium), county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Tilurius fl. (?) Tilurium (Peut.)
• Etymology: According to Pokorny, the name belongs to a huge series of hydronyms derived from various extensions of the IE root *tei- 'to melt, dissipate, decay'. The suffix -ur- may be reconducted to the IE extension *(a)uer- 'water, rain, flow', or be an agent suffix, *til-ro-io.

Tragurium

• Place: Trogir, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Tragurium (Ptol., Plin., Strab., Mel., Peut., Guid.)
• Etymology: Anreiter suggests that the name belongs to a series *trag- reflecting the IE root *tragh- 'to drag, move, run', with the possible meaning of 'harbor'. The suffix -urio- may be compared with that of Tilurius fl.

Tribulium

• Place: Trebinje, region Trebinje, Bosnia and Hercegovina
• Name: Tribulium (Plin.)
• Etymology: The name may be analyzed as tri-bulium, or the place of the 'three hills', from the numeral 'three' (*trei-) and an appellative derived from the IE root *b(h)eu- 'to swell, puff'.

Varvaria

• Place: Bribinska Glavica of Skradin, county S^ibensko-Kninska, Croatia
• Name: Varvaria (Ptol., inscr.)
• Etymology: It is not clear if the Varvarini of Pliny, a Liburnian tribe, referred to the same town. Tentatively, the Varvarini might have been 'the lesser *Varvari' and similarly Varvaria 'the town of the *Varvari. The latter were named 'the squirrels', from a reduplication form *uer-uer- of the IE root reconstructed as *uer- 'squirrel, etc.'

Isles near Dalmatia

Bova i.

• Place: island C^iovo, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Bova i. (Plin.) Boa i. (Peut.)
• Etymology: Unknown. Possibly related to the IE root *bheu- 'to be, grow', or to *b(h)eu- 'to swell, puff', or even to *gwou- 'cattle' (but this stem alone without suffixes or compound terms would be problematic).

Brattia i., Elaphusa i.

• Place: island Brac^, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Brattia i. (Plin., Peut.) Elaphusa i. (Steph. Byz.) Bretanidis i. (Steph. Byz.) Cratiae (Scyl.)
• Etymology: A local legend relates the name with the Greek region of Ambracia, from which the first colonizers had come. From the Greek name Elaphusa meaning 'island of the deers', it is possible to explain also the other forms as related to the IE root *bhren- 'horn' and in particular to the name of the 'deer', *bhren-to- 'the horned'.

Issa i.

• Place: island Vis, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Issa i. (Ptol., Plin., Scyl.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Pharia i.

• Place: island Hvar, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Pharia i. (Ptol., Plin.) Pharos i. (Strab., Scyl.)
• Etymology: Founded by Greek settlers from the island of Paros (Cyclades).

Solentia i.

• Place: island S^olta, county Splitsko-Dalmatinska, Croatia
• Name: Solentia (Plin., Peut., Rav.) Olyntia (Scyl.)
• Etymology: The stem *sol-, clearly belonging to an O-language, may be derived from the IE root *suel- 'foot, sole, ground'. This is a good etymology for an 'island', while a derivation from the other IE root *selos 'swamp, sea' seems not semantically supported.

Illyria Romana

Acruvium

• Place: Grbalj of Kotor, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Acruvium (Ptol.) Acruium (Plin.)
• Etymology: Possibly to be analysed as *akro-ouio-, from the IE root *ak'ro-, an extension of the root *ak'- 'sharp'. Compare with Acumincum (Pannonia), in a domain often thought to be Illyrian. Both names belong to a "centum" language.

Anderva

• Place: close to Niks^ic', state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Sanderua (Peut.)
• Etymology: Unknown.

Asamum

• Place: Lapada of Dubrovnik, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Asamum (Peut.)
• Etymology: Usually compared with Asamus fl. (Moesia) and explained as the satem reflex of *ak'_es-men 'stony', from the IE root *ak'- 'sharp'. This is one of the strongest arguments in favor of the satem character of the language spoken in (southern, at least) Dalmatia.

Assidium

• Place: possibly Trebinje, republic Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Adzizium (Peut.) Assidium (Guid.)
• Etymology: Usually analyzed as *ad zizium and explained as a name meaning 'goat', from the IE root *g'haido- 'goat'. This is considered one of the proofs that the "Illyrian" language was satem, since *g'h>z in satem languages. However the same IE root is often reconstructed as *ghaido- since it does not have any sure satem cognates.

Birziminium

• Place: Podgorica, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Birziminium (It. Ant.) Bersumnum (Peut.) Burzumon (Rav.) Bermezium (Proc.)
• Etymology: Usually (Ribezzo, Meyer) explained from the IE root *bher(e)g'h- 'high, mountain', with the shift *g'h>z typical of satem languages. Another possible explaination is from a satem word for 'birch', similarly to Lithuanian berzas, from the IE root *bhereg'- 'to shine, white'. In any case, compare with Bersamae (Thracia), Berzobis (Dacia).

Butua

• Place: Budva, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Butua (Ptol., Plin.) Buthoe (Steph. Byz., Scyl.) Batua (Peut.) Budua (Guid.)
• Etymology: According to Stephanus Byzantinus, the town was founded by Cadmus of Thebes and named after its chariot driven by oxen, Greek bous, which is from the IE root *gwou- 'cattle'. Compare with Butuntum (Apulia), on the opposite side of the Adriatic sea.

Cattarus

• Place: Kotor, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Cattarus (Proc.) Catharus (inscr.) Decadarum (Rav., Guid.) Decatera (Porph.)
• Etymology: Unknown. The Latin syntagm de Cathar(o) was probably analyzed in medieval Greek sources as Dekadaro(n).

Chinna

• Place: Klinė/Klina, region Kosova/Kossovo, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Chinna (Ptol.)
• Etymology: If ch<*g'h-, the name could derive from the IE root *g'hei- 'winter, snow', and in particular from its extension *g'hei-mn- 'cold, snow'. The shift *g'h>ch implies a centum language, though ch could represent the aspirated voiceless stop kh, as in Greek, or the aspiration h as, e.g., in Latin and Venetic.

Damastium

• Place: not identified, possibly region Kosova/Kossovo (no silver mines in present-day Albania), Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Damastium (Strab.) Emastus ? (Proc.)
• Etymology: Usually (Krahe, Mayer, etc.) explained with an A-language appellative *damas- meaning 'settlement' or similar, derived from the IE root *dem- 'to build, house'. The place name could derive from a tribe's name *Damasti, i.e., *damas-ste. A concurrent root is *dhe- 'to put, place', from whence also Daco-Mysian dava 'fortress'. Both in the Daco-Mysian and in the "Illyrian" strata the IE *dh and *d shoud be reflected by d.

Daorsum

• Place: Os^anic'i of Stolac, canton Hercegovac^ko-Neretvanski, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Daorson (inscr.)
• Etymology: From the tribe name Daorsi.

Diluntum

• Place: Stolac, canton Hercegovac^ko-Neretvanski, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Diluntum (Peut.)
• Etymology: The ending -untum with the shift of the sonant nasal into un seems typically Illyrian. The stem may reflect the zero-grade of the l-extension *dhei-l- 'sheep' of the IE root *dhe(i)- 'to suck', which is also the basis of Delminium. Therefore, the name could have originally meant 'shepherd hut'.

Doclea

• Place: Duklja of Podgorica, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Doclea (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Probably a local name later Grecized as Dioclea.

Drilo fl.

• Place: river Drin, Albania
• Name: Drilo fl. (Ptol., Strab.)
• Etymology: It may be derived from the IE root *der- at the zero-grade *dr- 'to run'. Compare with other hydronyms on both sides of the Adriatic sea, Trinius fl., Tirinus fl. (Samnium), and Drinus fl. (Illyria). By the substratists (UTET, De Giovanni), the name was explained from a stem *tir-/dir- with a hydronymic meaning.

Epicaria

• Place: Pukė, district Pukė, Albania
• Name: Epicaria (Ptol.)
• Etymology: Likely a Greek name, similarly to the not identified Epidotium (Peut.).

Epidaurus

• Place: C^avtat of Konavle, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Epidaurus (Ptol., Plin.) Epitaurum (Peut., Guid.)
• Etymology: From the name of Epidaurus in Argolis.

Labeatis lac.

• Place: lake Shkodrės/Skadarsko, Albania/Montenegro
• Name: Labeatis (Liv.)
• Etymology: From the tribe name Labeati, which in turn may derive from a placename *Labea.

Leusinum

• Place: Panik of Bilec'a, republic Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Leusinum (Peut.) Leusinium (It. Ant.)
• Etymology: Possibly reflecting a local appellative meaning 'stone', derived from the productive IE root *leu- 'stone'.

Lissus, Acrolissus

• Place: Lezhė, district Lezhė, Albania
• Name: Lissus (Ptol., Strab.) Lissum (Plin., Guid.)
• Etymology: Compare with the Liburnian island Lissa i., whose name recalls in turn that of Issa i.. A tentative root-etymology could be from the IE root *leis- 'furrow, to furrow, to pursue, learn', as *leis-sio-, showing the suffix -sio- that is considered as typically Illyrian.

*Maluntum

• Place: Molunat of Konavle, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: *Maluntum (inferred from the survival of the name)
• Etymology: Mentioned by Krahe and Pokorny as a place name related to Albanian mal 'hill' and thus to the IE root *mel- 'to appear, come up'. The Albanian word could be just a cognate, and the a in the stem be derived from a zero-grade form.

Meteon

• Place: Medun of Podgorica, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Meteon (Liv.)
• Etymology: Possibly related to the IE root *met(a)-, an extension of *me- 'in the middle of, by, around, with'. The original meaning could have been '(the place in) the middle', i.e, 'the place of the covenant'.

Naro fl.

• Place: river Neretva, Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Name: Naronus fl. (Ptol.) Naro fl. (Strab., Cat., Scyl.)
• Etymology: Usually (Pokorny) considered as one of the prototypes of the IE root *ner- 'to conceal, cover, hiding place, hollow'. Compare with Nar fl. and with many Slavic and Baltic place names. The a vowel in the stem may be explained as the reflex of a very old IE stratum (Old European), which is typical of hydronyms.

Pardua

• Place: Zamaslina of Ston, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Pardua (Peut.)
• Etymology: Tentatively, the name may be related to the IE root *pezd- 'to break wind' or *perd- 'to fart', from a feature of the site. The ending -ua is found also in Butua.

Rhizinium, Rhizonicus sin., Rhizon fl.

• Place: Risan (Rhizinium), bay of Boka Kotorska (Rhizonicus sin.), river Risan (Rhizon fl.), state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Risium (Ptol.) Rhizinium (Plin.) Risio (Strab.) Rhizon (Liv., Polyb.) Resinum (Peut.) Rhizonicus sin. (Ptol.) Rhizon fl. (Polyb.)
• Etymology: By Jokl the name was related to Albanian rrjedh 'to flow' and tus to the IE root *reg'- 'damp, rain'. This explaination would imply a satem *g'>z. However Barich related the name to Middle High German risel 'rain' and thus to the extension *rei-s- of the IE root *rei- 'to flow' (in turn a possible basis derived from the IE root *er- 'to move'). This is actually the most likely interpretation, since the variants of the name with z might have been influenced by the Greek noun riza, rizion 'root'.

Salluntum

• Place: not identified, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Salluntum (Peut., It. Ant.)
• Etymology: The name of this town is probably related to the tribe of the Sallentini in Apulia. The ending -untum is typically Illyrian.

Salthua

• Place: not identified, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Salthua (inscr.)
• Etymology: The ending -ua is diffused in the area, see Butua. The stem salt(h)- mat be reconducted to the IE root *sel- 'to spring ' as an appellative 'spring'. A derivation from the IE root *sal- 'salt, salty water' is less likely because the town was not on the sea.

Scodra

• Place: Shkodėr, district Shkodėr, county Skhodėr, Albania
• Name: Scodra (Ptol., Plin., Liv., Peut.) Codras (Guid.)
• Etymology: To be analysed as *skod-ra. The name may recall the IE root *(s)ked- 'to crush, scatter', possibly with the meaning of 'crevice, fork'. Obviously the origin of the place name is within an O-language.

Thermidava

• Place: not identified
• Name: Thermidava (Ptol.)
• Etymology: This twon was located in the inner part of the province of Illyria, in or close to Dardania (roughly present-day Kosovo). According to Georgiev, the name is clearly Daco-Mysian since it shows the typical compound word dava 'town'. The Daco-Mysian stratum extended westward until Dardania and Moesia Superior. The stem therm- could be a Grecized form.

Ulcinium

• Place: Stari Ulcinj, state Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro
• Name: Ulcinium (Ptol., Peut.) Olcinium (Plin.)
• Etymology: According to Pliny, Ulcinium ...quod antea Colchinium dictum est... has been founded by the Colchi. This is considered an earlier folk-etymology, and the name Ulcinium is related by Pokorny, Georgiev, etc. to a local name of the 'wolf', cognate of Albanian ulk from the IE root *ul_ekw-os 'wolf'.

Isles near Illyria

Corcyra Nigra

• Place: island Korc^ula, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Corcyra Nigra (Melaena) (Ptol., Plin., Strab.)
• Etymology: A Greek colony, it took its name from that of Corcyra i. (Graecia), and the specification from its dark pine forests.

Melita i.

• Place: island Mljet, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Melita i. (Ptol., Plin.)
• Etymology: Usually considered, similarly to Melita i. (Africa), a Greek (or Grecized) name meaning 'honey', or possibly 'sweet' due to the presence of sweet water in the middle of the sea. Another explaination is to compare the names with some appellatives meaning 'sand' (and thus Melita as the 'sandy (island)'), derived from the IE root *mel- 'to grind, hit, fine, ground'.

Ladesta

• Place: island Lastovo, county Dubrovac^ko-Neretvanska, Croatia
• Name: Ladestris i. (Peut.) Ladesta i. (Steph. Byz.)
• Etymology: A formation with the ending -ste, but the stem is unknown.

Conclusions

The linguistic situation of the Roman province of Illyricum is rather unclear and highly disputed between supporters of its (at least partly) satem feature. Moreover, this hypothetic satem language is often intepreted as to be the ancestor of the modern Albanian language.

Actually, toponymy suggests that there was at least one satem stratum, in Illyria proper and surprisingly in the inner part of southern Dalmatia (parts of today Hercegovina, Montenegro and Sandjak). However, this language cannot be the direct ancestor of Albanian for many reasons. It may tentatively be identified with a Mysian-like language. Continuity theory supporters would rather suggest that it should be identified with an early Slavic language, already present close to the historical Slavic domain.

In Liburnia, a Venetic stratum is easily recognizable for the typical presence of an f from PIE *bh, dh. As recognized by Georgiev and others, Venetic has nothing to do with "Illyrian".

In the rest of Liburnia, in Dalmatia, and in part of Illyria proper, a poorly characterized linguistic stratum may be reconstructed from some typical suffixes, like -etium from *-ent-, from the development of sonants like *n>un and generally for many points of contact with the opposite side of the Adriatic sea. especially Samnium and Apulia. This stratum has been called here Illyrian for what concerning Apulia. Possibly this group of languages coincides with the "Central Illyrian-Pannonian" of the classification (based on anthroponyms) of Katicic'.

Last modified: September 25, 2010
by Antonio Sciarretta
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