bōc-cist

bōc-cist, f.n: a repository for books, either for reading or for sale. (BOAK-CHIST / ˈboːk-ˌtʃɪst)

Look for The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English at your local bōc-cist – it’s out in the US & Canada today! Find out more.

A book, The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English, by Hana Videen, against a background of woven textiles. The cover background is white with a gold and red border with decorative gold dots. The title and author’s name are written inside an arched window shape, with a border of Old English words surrounding it: wæfre-gange, gafol-fisc, hring-finger, on-lucan, cwen, æg, dust, beo-gang, lig-draca, wyrd, dream-cræft, hærfest, and druncen-georn. The area surrounding the Old English word border has wood-cut style illustrations in red and gold, each in its own compartment but overlapping slightly: a spider, a fish, the letter h in a calligraphic style, a hand with a ring, a key, a woman carrying a basket of eggs, a bee, a dragon, an ink pot and quill with scroll of paper, a man playing a harp, a bundle of wheat, and a goblet. — Published in the UK by Profile Books on 11 November 2021. Published in the US and Canada by Princeton University Press today.

webbestre

Posted on May 27, 2022 by Hana Videen

webbestre, f.n: weaver; (specifically) female weaver. (WEB-bes-truh / ˈwɛb-bɛs-trə)

Medieval manuscript image of a haloed, veiled woman sitting at a loom behind partially woven blue cloth that matches her dress; her hands hold four cards through which the warp threads pass, and to her right is a beater amid the warp threads. — Virgin Mary in Book of Hours; France (Paris), 1430-5; Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.359, f. 26v. [ica.themorgan.org]

hyge-geōmor

Posted on May 26, 2022 by Hana Videen

hyge-geōmor, adj: sad in mind, sorrowful. (HUE-yuh-YEH-oh-mor / ˈhy-jə-ˌjɛoː-mɔr)

snel-scipe

Posted on May 25, 2022 by Hana Videen

snel-scipe, m.n: boldness, bravery. (SNELL-SHIP-uh / ˈsnɛl-ˌʃɪ-pə)

This week’s Wordhord Wednesday post is on cheeks and jowls. Read it on Patreon.

eald-writere

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Hana Videen

eald-writere, m.n: an antiquarian, one who writes about old or ancient matters. (EH-ald-WRIH-teh-ruh / ˈɛald-ˌwrɪ-tɛ-rə)

cēace

Posted on May 23, 2022 by Hana Videen

cēace, f.n: jaw, jawbone or mandible (frequently in the plural); perhaps also the jaw and the lower part of the face; upper part of the throat, cavity between the jaws. (CHAY-ah-chuh / ˈtʃeːa-tʃə)

Medieval manuscript image of naked humans sitting in flames in the sharp-toothed open jaws of a dark beast with red eyes. — Psalter; England (London), c. 1180; Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Latin 10433, f. 9r. [gallica.bnf.fr]

un-wine

Posted on May 22, 2022 by Hana Videen

un-wine, m.n: enemy (‘un-friend’). (UN-WIN-uh / ˈʌn-ˌwɪ-nə)

dēofol-dǣd

Posted on May 21, 2022 by Hana Videen

dēofol-dǣd, f.n: a devil-deed, diabolical deed. (DAY-ov-oll-DAD / ˈdeːɔ-vɔl-ˌdæːd)

Sequence of images in a medieval manuscript depicting an angel being unchained from a flame-filled prison, then flying up and out the gate to a garden where a serpent in a tree communicates with a naked woman, then a naked man and woman look at a tree together. — Satan’s messenger flying up from hell in the Junius manuscript; England, c. 1000; Bodleian Library, MS. Junius 11, p. 20. [digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk]

brycg-weard

Posted on May 20, 2022 by Hana Videen

brycg-weard, m.n: bridge-keeper, defender of a bridge. (BRUEJ-WEH-ard / ˈbrydʒ-ˌwɛard)

Medieval manuscript illustration of a man wearing a crown standing on a bridge with two companions; two entirely-gold naked humans meet them with hammers, one in the process of tumbling off the side of the bridge. — Alexander the Great encounters two golden knights guarding a bridge in India, from the Romance of Alexander; France, 14th century; Bodleian Library, MS. Bodl. 264, f. 70v. [digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk]

wiþerling

Posted on May 19, 2022 by Hana Videen

wiþerling, m.n: an adversary. (WITH-er-ling / ˈwɪ-θɛr-lɪŋ)

Medieval manuscript illustration of a hairy quadruped with a long tail, mane and rainbow stripes opening its mouth wide towards a two-legged, rainbow-winged dragon whose head is hidden in a hole in the dirt. — A panther scaring a dragon in a bestiary; France (Thérouanne?), c. 1270; J. Paul Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig XV 3, f. 88r. [blogs.getty.edu]

sǣ-ǣl

Posted on May 18, 2022 by Hana Videen

sǣ-ǣl, m.n: sea-eel. (SAE-AEL / ˈsæː-ˌæːl)

This week’s Wordhord Wednesday post is on listening. Read it on Patreon.

Old English Wordhord

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