117 English Words from the Vikings |
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117 English Words from Old Norse (as Spoken by
the Vikings)
Based
on an article by John-Erik Jordan "Without the Vikings, English would be missing some awesome words like berserk, ugly, muck, skull, knife, die, and cake!"aloft – á (on) + lopt (loft; sky; heaven)
anger – angr (trouble, affliction)
awe – agi (terror)
axle – öxull (axis)
bag – baggin
ball – bǫllr (round object)
band - band (rope)
bark – bǫrkr
bask – baðask (reflexive of baða,
“to bathe”)
berserk – berserkr,
(lit. 'bear-shirt')
billow – bylgja
bleak - bleikr
blunder – blundra (to shut one's eyes; to stumble about
blindly)
bug – búkr (an insect within tree trunks)
bulk – bulki (cargo)
bull – boli
bylaw – bylög (village-law)
cake – kaka
call – kalla (to cry loudly)
cast – kasta (to throw)
choose – kjósa
clip – klippa (to cut)
clouds - sky
club – klubba
crawl – krafla (to claw)
dirt – drit (excrement)
dregs – dregg (sediment)
fellow – felagi
flat - flatr
fog - fok
foot – fótr
freckles – freknur
gawk – ga (to heed)
get – geta
girth – gjörð (circumference)
give – gefa
glitter – glitra
glove – lofi (middle of the hand)
guest – gestr
gust - gustr
haggle – haggen (to chop)
happy – happ (good luck; fate)
heathen – heiðinn (one who inhabits the heath or open
country)
hell – In Norse mythology, Loki's daughter Hel ruled the underworld.
hit – hitta (to find)
husband – hús (house) + bóndi (occupier and tiller of soil) =húsbóndi
ill – illr (bad)
irk – yrkja (to work)
keel – kjölr
kid – kið (young goat)
kindle – kynda
knife - knifr
knot – knutr
lad – ladd (young man)
law – lag
leg – leggr
link – hlenkr
litmus – litr (dye) + mosi (lichen; moss)
loan – lán (to lend)
loft – lopt (air, sky; upper room)
loose – lauss
low - lagr
mire – myrr (bog)
muck – myki (cow dung)
mug – mugge
oaf – alfr (elf)
plough – plogr
race – rás (to race, to move swiftly)
raft – raptr (log)
raise – reisa
ransack – rannsaka (to search a house)
reindeer – hreindyri
rid – rythja (to clear land)
rogg (rugged) terrain can be shrouded in
rotten – rotinn
run – renna
saga - saga
sale – sala
scale (for weighing) – skal (bowl, drinking cup)
scant – skamt (short, lacking)
scare – skirra
scrap – skrap
scrape – skrapa
seat – sæti
seem – sœma (to conform)
shake – skaka
skate – skata (fish)
skill – skil (distinction)
skin – skinn (animal hide)
skip – skopa
skirt – skyrta (shirt)
skull - skulle
slaughter – slatra (to butcher)
sly – sloegr
snub – snubba (to curse)
sprint – spretta (to jump up)
stagger – stakra (to push)
stain – steina (to paint)
stammer – stemma (to hinder or dam up)
steak – steik (to fry)
sway – sveigja (to bend; to give way)
take – taka
thrall – þræll (slave)
thrift – þrift (prosperity)
thrust - þrysta
thwart – þvert (across)
tidings – tíðindi (news of events)
troll - troll
ugly – uggligr (dreadful)
wand – vondr (rod)
want – vanta (to lack)
weak – veikr
whirl – hvirfla (to go around)
whisk – viska (to plait or braid)
window – vindauga (lit. “wind-eye”)
wing – vængr
yule – jol (a pagan winter solstice feast)
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