Dymbil-dagar

Old Norse Dictionary - dymbil-dagar

Meaning of Old Norse word "dymbil-dagar" in English.

As defined by the Cleasby & Vigfusson Old Norse to English dictionary:

dymbil-dagar
m. pl. the ‘dumb-bell days,’ i. e. the three days before Easter; hence dymbildaga-vika, u, f. [Swed. dymmel-vecka; Dan. dimmel-uge], Passion week, Bs. i. 71, Fms. x. 72, H. E. i. 491, Sturl. i. 25; during the dymbildagar the bells in Icel. were rung with a wooden tongue called dymbill, m.; a dymbill is often mentioned among the inventories of Icel. churches of the 14th century, e. g. kirkja á dymbil, Vm. 47, 51: it is, however, likely that the word dymbill itself is simply derived from the Engl. dumb-bell, as in the Roman church the bells were dumb or muffled in the Passion week: Björn (Lex.) mentions that in the century before his time people used to strike the time to a dance with the dymbill. It was also an old Icel. custom that the father of a house inflicted a general chastisement on his children and household on Good Friday for the sins of the past year, gently or strongly as they had been obedient or not; hence the popular phrase, líðr að dimbildögum, or koma dymbildagar, = the dimmel-days are nigh, i. e. the day of reckoning will surely come; cp. H. E. iv. 180, 181 (note).

Possible runic inscription in Younger Futhark:ᛏᚢᛘᛒᛁᛚ-ᛏᛅᚴᛅᚱ
Younger Futhark runes were used from 8th to 12th centuries in Scandinavia and their overseas settlements

Abbreviations used:

cp.
compare.
Dan.
Danish.
e. g.
exempli gratia.
Engl.
English.
f.
feminine.
gl.
glossary.
Icel.
Iceland, Icelander, Icelanders, Icelandic.
i. e.
id est.
l.
line.
m.
masculine.
n.
neuter.
pl.
plural.
Swed.
Swedish.
v.
vide.

Works & Authors cited:

Björn
Biörn Halldórsson.
Bs.
Biskupa Sögur. (D. III.)
Fms.
Fornmanna Sögur. (E. I.)
H. E.
Historia Ecclesiastica Islandiae. (J. I.)
Sturl.
Sturlunga Saga. (D. I.)
Vm.
Vilkins-máldagi. (J. I.)
➞ See all works cited in the dictionary

Also available in related dictionaries:

This headword also appears in dictionaries of other languages descending from Old Norse.

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