sund-būend, m.n: a sea-dweller, but the word, which occurs only in the plural, is used for men, mankind. (SUND-BOO-end)
Category Archives: people
gāst-berend
gāst-berend, m.n: a spirit-bearer, soul-bearer, living person, man. (GAHST-beh-rend)
This week’s Wordhord Wednesday post is on the many meanings of mæl. Read it on Patreon.
scip-wyrhta
scip-wyrhta, m.n: a shipwright, builder of ships. (SHIP-wurh-ta)
Noah building the ark in Histoire ancienne jusqu’à César. Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (Acre), late 13th century. British Library, Add. MS 15268, f. 7v. [bl.uk]
fǣmne
fǣmne, f.n: a virgin, damsel, maid, woman. (FAM-neh)
Jacob van Maerlant’s Der Naturen Bloeme. Flanders, c. 1350. Hague, Koninklijke Bibliotheek, KB, KA 16, f. 63r. [bestiary.ca]
wīte-þēow
wīte-þēow, m.n: one condemned to slavery for crime, or from inability to pay the fines incurred from that crime; (figuratively) one in hell. (WEE-teh-THAY-oh)
esne-wyrhta
esne-wyrhta, m.n: a hireling, mercenary. (EZ-neh-WURH-ta)
Chroniques de France ou de St Denis (from 1270 to 1380). France (Paris), late 14th century (after 1380). British Library, Royal 20 C VII, f. 41v. [bl.uk]
sige-cwēn
sige-cwēn, f.n: a victorious queen. (SIH-yeh-KWAIN)
Penthesilia, queen of the Amazons, in an anonymous French translation of Boccaccio’s De claris mulieribus. France (Rouen), c. 1440. British Library, Royal 16 G V, f. 35v. [bl.uk]
nunne
nunne, f.n: a nun. (NUN-neh)
This week’s Wordhord Wednesday post is on St Augustine’s arrival in England. Read it on Patreon.
Burnet Psalter. England, 15th century. Aberdeen University Library, MS 25, f. 61r. [abdn.ac.uk]
hǣmed-ceorl
hǣmed-ceorl, m.n: a married man. (HAM-ed-CHAY-orl)
Detail of groom. Miniature on vellum by Niccolò di Giacomo da Bologna, 1350s. Washington, DC, Rosenwald Collection 1961.17.5. [nga.gov]
hǣmed-wīf
hǣmed-wīf, n.n: a married woman. (HAM-ed-WEEF)
Detail of bride and musicians. Miniature on vellum by Niccolò di Giacomo da Bologna, 1350s. Washington, DC, National Gallery of Art, Rosenwald Collection 1961.17.5. [nga.gov]
