gærs-swīn

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Hana Videen

gærs-swīn, n.n: ‘grass-swine’, i.e. a swine paid to a lord for the privilege of pasturing swine on his meadows or grassland. (GAERS-SWEEN / ˈgærs-ˌswiːn)

Medieval manuscript image of a mama boar crouching down in the grass, looking at her five babies who look back at her. — Livre de la chasse; France (Paris), c. 1406-7; Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.1044, f. 20v. [ica.themorgan.org]

gēr

Posted on September 10, 2021 by Hana Videen

gēr, n.n: year, a year’s harvest; name of the G-rune ᛄ. (YAIR / ˈjeːr)

micelian

Posted on September 9, 2021 by Hana Videen

micelian, wk.v: to become great, to increase in size or in quantity; to make great. (MI-cheh-li-ahn / ˈmɪ-tʃɛ-lɪ-an)

Download the app for iOS on the App Store and zoom in on beautiful images like this one to see all the details!

Medieval manuscript with large lettering made up of detailed patterns, knotted line work and small creatures. — Lindisfarne Gospels; England (probably Lindisfarne), c. 700; British Library, Cotton MS Nero D IV, f. 211r. [bl.uk]

rǣde

Posted on September 8, 2021 by Hana Videen

rǣde, f.n: a reading, lesson. (RAE-duh / ˈræː-də)

This week’s Wordhord Wednesday post is on strong cities, clews and the world’s end. Read it on Patreon.

Medieval manuscript image of a rabbit reading from a book with a fox crouched on its back. — Arthurian Romances; France, c. 1275-1300; Yale University Library, Beinecke MS 229, f. 133v. [collections.library.yale.edu]

ȳr

Posted on September 7, 2021 by Hana Videen

ȳr, m.n: name of the Y-rune ᚣ; possibly a bow or a horn. (UER / ˈyːr)

wyrhta

Posted on September 6, 2021 by Hana Videen

wyrhta, m.n: worker, labourer; maker, creator. (WUER-h’ta / ˈwyrx-ta)

Medieval manuscript image of a hooded man holding a spade, rod and pruning hook. — The Moralised Game of Chess; France (Paris?), early 15th century; British Library, Royal 19 C XI, f. 23r. [bl.uk]

fela-fǣcne

Posted on September 5, 2021 by Hana Videen

fela-fǣcne, adj: very treacherous. (FELL-ah-FACK-nuh / ˈfɛ-la-ˌfæːk-nə)

spellian

Posted on September 4, 2021 by Hana Videen

spellian, wk.v: to talk, converse, discourse; to announce, proclaim, utter, tell. (SPEH-li-ahn / ˈspɛ-lɪ-an)

Medieval manuscript image of a man and woman sitting and conversing on a bench, with a small dog sitting in the woman’s lap. — Morte Artu; France (St Omer or Tournai?), c. 1315-1325; British Library, Royal MS 14 E iii, f. 146r. [bl.uk]

hwyrfol

Posted on September 3, 2021 by Hana Videen

hwyrfol, adj: fickle, changeable. (H’WUER-voll / ˈhwyr-vɔl)

deorcian

Posted on September 2, 2021 by Hana Videen

deorcian, wk.v: to darken, to grow dark. (DEH-ork-ih-ahn / ˈdɛɔr-kɪ-an)

The Wordhord App’s Dark Mode is inspired by a medieval style ‘dark-mode’ where manuscripts were inscribed in gold on pages dyed a deep bluish-black. Download the app for iOS on the App Store.

Two facing pages of a medieval manuscript made of black-dyed parchment, with an illustration of saints on the left and Latin writing in gold and white on the right; the margins are decorated with a floral design in gold leaf on a field of blue. — The Black Hours; Belgium (Bruges), c. 1480; Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.493, ff. 18v-19r. [themorgan.org]

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