eþel

See also: ethel and Ethel

Old English

Alternative forms

• œ̄þel, œ̄ðel — Anglian
• ǣþel
• eðel
• *ᛟᚦᛖᛚ (*œþel)

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *ōþil, from a variant of Proto-Germanic *ōþalą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeː.θel/, [ˈeː.ðel]

Noun

ēþel m

1. one's native country, homeland

   Iċ wille ġesēċan mīnne ēðel ofer sǣ.

   I want to visit my homeland across the sea.

   Flīema biþ sē þe his ēðel forlēt oþþe under þrucce oþþe for nīede.

   A refugee is someone who left their home country either under pressure or out of necessity.

   • 10th century, The Wanderer:

     Swā iċ mōdsefan · mīnne sceōlde,
     oft earmċeariġ, · ēðle bidǣled,
     frēomǣgum feor, · feterum sǣlan,

     Like I should my heart,
     oft wretched, bereft of homeland,
     far from noble kinsmen, bind with fetters,

2. the rune ᛟ

Declension

Strong a-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	ēþel	ēþlas
accusative	ēþel	ēþlas
genitive	ēþles	ēþla
dative	ēþle	ēþlum

Derived terms

• ēþelrīċe
• ēþelweard