History, Wonder Tales, Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends The Flemish | Page 195

9. 4.
The terms of the preparation of flax and hemp and of the weaving of linen are
surprisingly numerous in view of the scarcity of evidence of Low Dutch influence on
this industry.
Swingle (c. 1325), a wooden instrument resembling a sword used for beating and
scraping flax and hemp so as to cleanse it of woody or coarse particles; ad. M.Du.
swinghel, swingle for flax (corresponding in form to OE. swingell, swingle, stroke or
stripe with a rod, whipping, scourge, whip; also once, swingle or distaff) or partly ad.
MLG. swengel, bell-clapper, pump-handle, swipe (M.Du. swenghel, swipe, Du.
zwengel, swingle), which would account for the secondary senses (c. 1440), the
striking part or swipple of a flail, and (14.., Voc., Wr.-Wü.), the clapper of a bell.
Swingle, vb. (c. 1325), to beat or scrape with a swingle, to scutch; ad. M.Du.
swinghelen, from swinghel, swingle.
Rib (c. 1340), a flat iron tool used for cleaning flax after the breaking process; in the
14th century ribbe, perhaps ad. MLG. ribbe-, ribb-(îsern) (LG. ribbe-îsen, -îsder). The
vb. is half a century later, Rib (1393), to rub or scrape flax or hemp with a flat iron tool;
from the sb., but cf. Du. and LG. ribben.
Ret (c. 1440, Pr. Parv.), to soak, esp. flax or hemp, in water in order to soften or
season; the East Anglian form ret (earlier retten, reten), is perhaps from M.Du. reeten,
reten, but the Northern forms rayt, rait, rate, seem to indicate an ON. *reyta (Norw.
røyta, Sw. röta, Da. røde).
Brake (c. 1450), a toothed instrument for braking flax or hemp; (c. 1440, Pr. Parv.), a
baker's kneading-machine; (1534), in brewing and similar processes, a wooden mill to
crush green fruits, hops, &c.; ad. MLG. brake or M.Du. braeke (Du. braak), a flaxbrake (whence F. braquer, to brake flax), from Du. breken, to break; the form brakene
in Pr. Parv. may represent the plural of the M.Du. or MLG. word; the resemblance of
the sb. to the cognate Eng. vb. apparently gave rise to the extension of sense by
which ‘brake’ became a generic term of implements
used for breaking or crushing. The vb. is half a century earlier, Brake (1398, Trevisa),
but is from the sb.
A term for the finished linen article is Lake (c. 1386, Chaucer), fine linen; probably ad.
Du. laken (M.Du. laken, lakene, lake), linen.
Knock, Knok (1573, once), a bundle of heckled flax; apparently ad. LG. knocke, in
the same sense.

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