-onna is a presumed hydronymic suffix, perhaps pre-Indo-European. Observed in many river names[1], it is generally analyzed as meaning 'source, spring' or 'river'.
A Gaulish word *onno was glosed as 'flumen' ('river') in the Vienne glossary. This doubtful word[2] was probably due to a theorization of the suffix -onna.
This suffix is observed in river names as:
Aisne < Axonna- Aronde < Aronna,
- Chalonne,
- Dronne,
- Garonne < Garumna,
- Lizonne,
- Saône < Sauconna,
- Saudronne,
- Seine < *Sakw-onna,
- Yonne < *Inka-onna…
Source
- ^ in particular in France
- ^ following Delamarre, Xavier (2003). Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise (2nd ed.). Paris: Editions Errance. ISBN 2-87772-237-6
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