Etymology

Two main interpretations of the v. at Cl 980 (describing the frustrated Sodomites shut out of Lot's house: ‘and vchon roþeled to þe rest þat he reche moʒt’) have been put forward, depending on whether or not it is identified with roþeled (1)(v.) and raþeled (v.). (1) Most editors have taken rest as 'sleep' and looked for a word that could relate to movement. (a) Thus GollCl (890n) and OED3 compare English rottle, rattle (see sense 5a) and ruttle (all of imitative origin, with various WGmc comparanda). (b) Anderson agrees with this sense, but instead compares an ON v. represented by OIcel riðlask 'rock, waver, reel to and fro', although this cannot be the direct source of the ME. (2)(a) Vant's reading (followed by Olsen) takes rest as OED3's n.3 'remaining', allowing roþeled to be interpreted with a sense 'mingle' compatible with his proposed senses of raþeled (v.) and roþeled (1)(v.) and thus identified as an instance of the same v. See further raþeled (v.) and roþeled (1)(v.). (b) Menner also seeks to associate the two verbs in Cl, glossing (intr.) ?'huddle' (next to (tr.) ?'bring together, prepare' for 59), offering only '?Cf. ON. hroða' as etymon. OIcel hroða 'huddle up' provides at best a partial explanation for both the form and the attested senses.

PGmc Ancestor

Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)

(1b) cp. riðlask 'rock, waver, reel to and fro'; (2a) raða ‘set in order’; (2b) cp. hroða 'huddle up'
(ONP (1b )cp. riðla (vb.); (2b) cp. hroða (CV))

Other Scandinavian Reflexes

(2a) Far raða, Icel raða, Norw rada, Sw rada

OE Cognate

Phonological and morphological markers

[ON fricative /ð/ < PGmc */ð/] (may not be applicable)

Summary category

DD2

Attestation

(1) There is one other possible instance in c1450(?a1400) Parl.3 Ages (Add 31042)(see Anderson 59n), which MED takes as an unrelated rōthelen (v.3). (2) Only otherwise from Gaw poet (see etymological discussion and roþeled (1)(v.)).

Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus

Cl 890

The interpretation of this word in Cl 890 depends on its identification, and glosses fall into two main groups depending on whether or not it is identified with raþeled (v.) and roþeled (1)(v.). See etymological discussion.

Bibliography

(1) MED rō̆thelen (v.(2)) , OED3 rothel (v.2) ; (2a) see raþeled (v.) and roþeled (1)(v.); (2b) hroða (CV)