eastre

See also: Eastre

Old English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Apparently named from the dawn goddess Ēastre, from Proto-West Germanic *austrā, from Proto-Germanic *Austrǭ, from a suffixed form of Proto-Indo-European *h₂ews- (“dawn”). Cognate with Old Frisian āsteron, Old High German ōstarūn (German Ostern).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈæ͜ɑːs.tre/

Noun

ēastre f

  1. Easter

Usage notes

  • Often used in the plural, with no change in meaning.
  • The oblique cases often show -on instead of -an. This could be from the original Germanic ending, -ōn, which became -an in all other n-stems.

Declension

Weak n-stem:

singular plural
nominative ēastre ēastran
accusative ēastran ēastran
genitive ēastran ēastrena
dative ēastran ēastrum

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Middle English: Eestour, Ester, Yestre
    • English: Easter
      • → Chickasaw: Iista'
    • Scots: Easter

References

  • Boehler, Maria. (1967) Die altenglischen Frauennamen, page 67
  • Ed. Henry Sweet (1885) The oldest English texts, volume 34, pages 158-159, 611
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