Words of Old Norse origin that have entered the English language, primarily from the colonisation of eastern and northern England between 800-1000 CE. Old Norse (abbreviated in dictonaries as O.N.) existed in its spoken and written form from c.100 CE, until its spread from the Nordic region to colonies as far west as Greenland and far east as Sweden, where the language diverged into West Norse (Faroe islands, Iceland, and Greenland) and East Norse (Denmark and Sweden). With some minor regional variations in loan words both West Norse and East Norse are essentially the same.
A
- anger
- angr
- awe
- agi
- awkward
- the first element is from Old Norse öfugr (="turned-backward"), the '-ward' part is from Old English weard
- axle
- öxl (="ox tree")
B
- bag
- baggi
- bait
- beita
- berserk
- berserkr, lit. 'bear-shirt', formidable warriors
- billow
- bylgja
- birth
- byrðr
- blunder
- blundra (="shut one's eye")
- both
- bathir
- bulk
- bulki
- bulk
- balkr
- bull
- boli
- bylaw
- bylög ('by'=village; 'lög'=law; 'village-law')
C
- call
- kalla (="cry loudly")
- cast
- kasta (="to throw")
- club
- klubba (="cudgel")
- crawl
- krafla (="to claw")
- creek
- kriki (="nook")
D
- die
- deyja (="pass away")
- dirt
- drit (="gossip")
- dregs
- dregg (="sediment")
E
- egg
- egg
F
- flit
- flytja
G
- garth
- gardhr (="garden")
- gawk
- from Middle English gawen, from Old Norse ga (="to heed")
- get
- geta, gat (>got), gittan (>gotten)
- geyser
- from Icelandic geysir, from Old Norse geysa (="to gush")
- gift
- gift (="dowry")
- girth
- gjördh
- give
- gefa
- gosling
- gæslingr" (="goose")
- guest
- gestr
- gust
- gustr
H
- hack
- höggva (="hew")
- haggle
- haggen (="to chop")
- hit
- hitta (="to meet")
- husband
- husbondi (="master of the house")
I
J
K
- knife
- knifr
L
- lad
- ladd (="young man")
- lathe
- hlaða (="to load")
- law
- lagu
- litmus
- litmose (="lichen for dying", lita ="to stain")
- loose
- lauss (="free")
- low
- lagr
M
- mire
- myrr (='bog')
- mistake
- mistaka (="miscarry")
- muck
- myki (="cow dung")
- mug
- mugge
N
O
- oaf
- alfr (="elf")
- odd
- oddi (="third number", "the casting vote")
P
- plough & plow
- plogr
Q
R
- raft
- raptr (="log")
- raise
- reisa
- ransack
- rannsaka (="to pillage")
- reindeer
- hreindyri
- rive
- rifa
- root
- rot
- rune
- run
S
- scarf
- skarfr (="fastening joint")
- score
- skor (='notch'; 'twenty')
- scrap & scrape
- skrap
- seem
- soema (="conform")
- skate
- skata (="fish")
- skill
- skil (="distinction")
- skin
- skinn (="animal hide")
- skirt
- skyrta (="shirt")
- sky
- sky (='cloud')
- slaughter
- slahtr (="butchering")
- sleight
- slœgdh
- sleuth
- sloð (="trail")
- snub
- snubba (="to curse")
- stagger
- stakra (="to push")
- steak
- steik, steikja
T
- take
- taka
- talk
- talar
- tarn
- tjörn, tjarn
- their
- þierra
- they
- þeir
- thrift
- þrift (="prosperity")
- troll
- troll (="fiend")
U
- ugly
- uggligr (="dreadful")
V
W
- wand
- vondr (="rod")
- want
- vanta (="to lack")
- weak
- veikr
- whirl
- hvirfla (="to go around")
- whisk
- viska (="to plait")
- wight
- vigr (="able in battle") (the other wight meaning "man" is from Old English)
- window
- vindauga (='wind-eye',) - although gluggi was more commonly used in Old Norse.
- wing
- vængr
X
Y
Z
See also
External links