holm en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /həʊlm/ (UK)
- /həʊm/ (UK)
- /hoʊm/ (US)
- /hoʊlm/ (US)
Etymology
From Middle English holm, holme, from Old English holm (“wave, ocean, water, sea, islet”) and Old Norse holmr, holmi (“islet”), both from the Proto-Germanic *hulmaz (“rising ground, hill, island”), from Proto-Indo-European root *kelH- (“to rise, be elevated, be prominent; hill”). Cognate with Old Saxon holm, Middle Low German holm, German Holm, Middle Dutch holm, Danish holm, Swedish holme, Norwegian Bokmål holme, Icelandic hólmur.
Meanings
- Small island, islet.
- An island in a lake, river or estuary; an eyot.
- (Orkney, Scotland, dialectal, qualifier:chiefly West Yorkshire(?)) Any small island, but especially one near a larger island or the mainland, sometimes with holly bushes; an islet, often in Norse-influenced place-names.
-
Rich flat land near a river, prone to flooding.
A Brownie once lived with Maxwell, Laird of Dalswinton, and was particularly attached to the Laird's daughter, the comeliest lass in all the holms of Nithsdale.
1828, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, volume II, London: William Harrison Ainsworth, page 170:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| holms | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| holme | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic |
Synonyms
bottomland · river-meadow · floodplain · bottoms
Translations (6)
uk остріве́ць (small island) · fi luoto (small island) · da holm (small island) · nl holm (small island) · sv holme (small island) · gd innis (small island)