2 nd S. IX. June 1G. '60.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



459 



Mr. Bates's list, but to show that many of tbe 

 apparent omissions were intended and defined, 

 and that the list prefixed to the Devonshire 

 Hamlets was very carefully and systematically 

 compiled. 



As I cannot agree with Mr. Bates that the two 

 lists will be found "exhaustive," I hope some of your 

 other correspondents will add wbat they can, even 

 in mere dates of various editions of the Hamlet- 

 hooks, and especially references to many valuable 

 papers which have appeared in reviews, maga- 

 zines, and literary journals. My own wish and 

 object in my Preface and Bibliography was, not 

 to give an elaborate paper, but to add to the 

 earliest known editions of the great drama a list, 

 as complete as practicable, of all subsequent edi- 

 tions, and of all books relating to the play, with 

 the exceptions previously named. Mr. Bates has 

 had experience enough in such a task, to bespeak 

 indulgence for errors of omission and commission, 

 and will regret to see several in the list he gave, 

 and especially in the title of the Spanish transla- 

 tion, which I gave correctly. My own copy is by 

 Inarco (not Marco) Celenio ; and as it has no in- 

 dication that it is a second edition, I assumed it 

 to be the first, and only gave the date 1798. On 

 some minor points in Mr. Bates's "Note" I will 

 not trouble you, but thank you for the space de- 

 voted to the illustration of our great poet's greatest 

 work, and hope that many other additions will be 

 made in your columns to the interesting mass of 

 i7a»i?eMiterature. Sam. Timmins. 



Edgbaston. 



Etymology of Shakspere. — I am not aware 

 whether the derivation of Shakspere's name has 

 yet been attempted. The only difficulty I ever 

 entertained was, the existence of the name Brak- 

 spear. Upon farther consideration, I cannot help 

 thinking that, although the latter name might be 

 very well given to a soldier who " broke his spear 

 in battle, yet that one could hardly have been 

 named from " shaking his spear," as everybody who 

 carried a spear in battle would necessarily brandish 

 it. The name of the poet is, I believe, found 

 variously written Shakspere, Shakspeare, Shak- 

 sper, Shakespere, Shakespear, Shakespeare, Shake- 

 »peyre, Shakyspere, Shaxper, Schakspere, Sehake- 

 gpere, Schakespeire, and Chacksper. 



Now the radicals s and sh; and gs, x, and ks are 

 interchangeable ; the vowels a, e, i, o and u, are also 

 interchangeable, as will appear by five different 

 orthographies of the name " Robert." Again, 

 the O. G. bert (Mod. G. brecht), signifying clarus, 

 praeclarus, illustris, in the composition of personal 

 names, besides very many other form?, takes those 

 of pear, per, and her. We now have little diffi- 

 culty in tracing the name " Shakspere," which I 

 take to be no other than a corruption of Sigis- 

 bbrt, " renowned for victory " (from O. G. sieg, 



A.-S. sige, Franc, et Alam, sigo, "victory"); 

 thus Sigisbert, Sigsbert, Sigsber, Siksper, Shik- 

 sper, Shaksper, Shakspere. I do not find the 

 name Sigisbert, but there is Sigibert (whence very 

 many Eng. names have been corrupted) and Sigis- 

 merus, as well as Segimerus and Sigimar, and also 

 Sigismund, whence by contraction the It. form 

 Sismondi. If it should be advanced that we have 

 the name "Wagstaff," I answer that the last 

 syllable in that and in many other personal 

 names, has nothing whatever to do with a " staff," 

 which I can prove if necessary. R. S. Charnock. 

 Gray's Inn. 



Emendation of "Macbeth." — In Macbeth, 

 Act IV. Sc. 1., the folio gives the following line : 



" Though bladed corn be lodged." 

 The emendation is : 



" Though Headed corn be lodged." 



I cannot understand how bleaded can be con- 

 sidered an emendation, and I much doubt whether 

 Shakspeare wrote bladed, much less bleaded, but I 

 think it more likely he wrote bearded, as by re- 

 ferring to his other plays he uses this word in its 

 proper sense, as, 



" The green corn hath rotted 

 Ere his youth attained a beard." 

 Midsummer's Night's Dream, Act II. Sc. 2. 

 And 



" His well-proportioned beard made rough and rugged 

 like to the Sumnw's corn by tempest lodg'd." 



Henry VI, Second Part', Act III. Sc. 2. 

 " Shall lodge the Summer corn." 



Richard II. Act III. Sc. 3. 



As to the word blade, the following from All's 

 Well shows that Shakspeare used it in the sense 

 we generally do : 



" Natural rebellion done in the blade of youth." 



Shakspere certainly knew that corn is not 

 lodged by the wind before it is in the ear or 

 bearded, and it is not likely he would have written 

 bladed, which is a word signifying com in its young 

 state. It may, however, be said that bladed is 

 right; for looking to the facts related in this scene 

 by the intervention of the witches, and the strange 

 things which happened, even the lodging of corn 

 in the blade, or Haded corn, was intended by 

 Shakspere as one of the effects of supernatural 

 agency. S. Beisly. 



COUNTRY TAVERN SIGNS. 



I have noted the following curious tavern signs 

 in the country, and shall be glad if any of your 

 local readers can throw light on the origin of any 

 of them : — 



Derbyshire. 



" Hark the Lasher! " at Edale, near Castleton. 



" Hunloke " Inn at Chesterfield. 



" I'.islmp Blaize " at Derby. 



