Färs härad

Abstract

The Scanian district name Färs härad has hitherto not been satisfyingly interpreted. This article attempts to interpret its name as dehydronymic, an approach that has yet to be tried. The interpretation builds upon a reconstruction of a hydronymic pair consisting of old names for Lake Vombsjön and the stream Kävlingeån with its tributary Björkaån, the modern names of which are late formations. Many of the district’s settlements are concentrated around Björkaån and Lake Vombsjön. An old name, the Old Danish *Fær m . ( Proto-Scandinavian * Farjaʀ) is reconstructed for Lake Vombsjön. The name is derived from a reconstructed Old Danish name *Far f. (Proto-Scandinavian *Farō) for Kävlingeån with its tributary Björkaån. The stream name is conceived of as a secondary name formation to the appellative far f. ‘journey’ (Proto-Scandinavian *farō), extant in Old Swedish, motivated by the stream’s likely function as a waterway in prehistoric and early medieval times, which is discussed at some length. It is suggested that the district name Färs härad, Old Danish Færshærath, contains a genitive of the lake name Old Danish *Fær m. This places Färs härad in an established group of dehydronymic district names extant in Denmark and Sweden.