Herðar
Old Norse Dictionary - herðar
Meaning of Old Norse word "herðar"
As defined by the Cleasby & Vigfusson Old Norse to English dictionary:
Old Norse word herðar can mean:herðar
- herðar
- f. pl. the shoulders, the upper part of the back, distinguished from öxl = shoulder in a special sense, Nj. 185, Eg. 289, Fms. vii. 55, Sks. 166, Fb. i. 396, Þiðr. 9, passim, cp. Matth. xxiii. 4, Luke xv. 5: so in the phrase, hafa hofuð og herðar yfir e-n, to be higher than another from the shoulders and upwards, cp. 1 Sam. ix. 2, x. 23.
- herðar
- COMPDS: (old form herði-, mod. herða-): herða-drengr, m. a hump on the back, a pun, Fms. viii. 404. herða-kambr, m. the withers, of a horse. herða-kistill, m. a hump. herða-klettr, m., poët. the ‘shoulder-knoll,’ the head, Skm. herða-lítill, adj. narrow-shouldered, Grett. 165. herða-munr, m. the difference from the shoulders and upwards, metaph. of one who is no match for another, Fms. xi. 442. herða-sár, n. a shoulder sore or wound, Sturl. i. 85. herða-toppr, m. a shoulder tuft, the part of a horse’s mane next the saddle, Sturl. i. 152, Bær. 16. herðar-blað, n. the shoulder blade, Nj. 70, Sturl. i. 152. herði-breiðr, adj. broad-shouldered, Fms. x. 151, Finnb. 324, Sturl. iii. 122, Fbr. 80 new Ed. herði-lútr, adj. with stooping or round shoulders, Barl. 15, Bs. i. 312. herði-mikill, adj. broad-shouldered, Sturl. iii. 122, Eg. 305, Ísl. ii. 203. herði-þykkr, adj. thick-shouldered, Ld. 298, Fbr. 40 new Ed.
Possible runic inscription in Younger Futhark:ᚼᛁᚱᚦᛅᚱ
Younger Futhark runes were used from 8th to 12th centuries in Scandinavia and their overseas settlements
Abbreviations used:
- cp.
- compare.
- f.
- feminine.
- l.
- line.
- m.
- masculine.
- pl.
- plural.
- v.
- vide.
- adj.
- adjective.
- metaph.
- metaphorical, metaphorically.
- mod.
- modern.
- n.
- neuter.
- poët.
- poetically.
Works & Authors cited:
- Eg.
- Egils Saga. (D. II.)
- Fb.
- Flateyjar-bók (E. I.)
- Fms.
- Fornmanna Sögur. (E. I.)
- Nj.
- Njála. (D. II.)
- Sks.
- Konungs Skugg-sjá. (H. II.)
- Þiðr.
- Þiðreks Saga. (G. I.)
- Barl.
- Barlaams Saga. (F. III.)
- Bs.
- Biskupa Sögur. (D. III.)
- Bær.
- Bærings Saga. (G. II.)
- Fbr.
- Fóstbræðra Saga. (D. II.)
- Finnb.
- Finnboga Saga. (D. V.)
- Grett.
- Grettis Saga. (D. II.)
- Ld.
- Laxdæla Saga. (D. II.)
- Skm.
- Skírnis-mál. (A. I.)
- Sturl.
- Sturlunga Saga. (D. I.)