Hreinn

Old Norse Dictionary - hreinn

Meaning of Old Norse word "hreinn" in English.

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

hreinn Old Norse word can mean:

hreinn: 1. adj. [Ulf. hrains = καθαρός; A. S. hrân; lost in Engl., except in the verb to rinse; O. H. G. hreini; Germ. rein; Dan.-Swed. ren]:—clean; h. líndúkr, Hom. 138, FS. 1; hrein klæði, FmS. vi. 207; gott korn ok hreint, SkS. 326; hreint vatn, Gd. 22; h. lögr, Alm. 35; hrein munnlaug, H. E. i. 489; h. mjöll, fresh snow, Rm. 26.

hreinn: β. bright; hreinir kyndlar, bright candles, Sól. 69; hreint bál, a bright flame, Lex. poët.; h. sól, the bright sun, id.; h. ok gagnsær, Hom. (St.) 15. 13; hreint sverð, hrein vápn, FmS. x. 360, Rétt. 120; h. rönd, a bright shield, Lex. poët.

hreinn: γ. eccl., hrein kvikendi, clean beasts, Hom. 29.

hreinn: II. metaph. clean, pure, sincere; hreint hjarta, h. hugr, hrein iðran, hreint líf, BS. i. 270, Sól. 7, Barl. 93, n. T., Vídal., PasS. passim.

hreinn: β. = Gr. καθαρός in the n. T. of the cleansed leper; ú-hreinn, unclean; tá-hreinn, quite clean.

hreinn: 2. m. [the word is prob. of Finnish origin. From the words of king Alfred, (þa deor he hâtað hrânas, Orosius i. 1, § 15, Bosworth’s Ed.), it seems that the king knew the name only from Ohthere’s tale; and when Egil in his poem on king Athelstân (if the verse be genuine) calls Northern England hreinbraut, the reindeers’ track, the phrase is prob. merely poët. for a wilderness. There is however a curious passage in Orkn. (448) where the hunting of reindeer in Caithness is recorded; the Icel. text is here only preserved in a single MS.; but though the Danish translation in Stockholm (of the year 1615) has the same reading, it is probably only a mistake of the Saga; for it is not likely that the Norsemen carried reindeer across the sea; the present breed was introduced into Icel. by the government only a century ago]:—a reindeer, Hm. 89, K. Þ. K. 132, FaS. iii. 359; hreins fit, Hkr. ii. 250; hreins horn, Ann. Nord. Old. 1844, 1845, p. 170; hreina hold, SkS. 191. The finest deer were called stál-hreinar (the stæl-hrânas of king Alfred), cp. tálhreinn, Haustl. In northern poetry, ships are freq. called hreinn, see Lex. poët., byr-hreinn, haf-h., hún-h., unnar-h., hlýrvangs-h., Gylfa-h., all of them meaning ships, Lex. poët.: a giant is called gnípu-h. = ‘crag-rein,’ Þd.: the wilderness is myrk-rein hreins = the mirk-field of the reindeer, Haustl. Hreinn is an old pr. name, Landn.

hreinn: COMPDS: hreinbraut.

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

Abbreviations used:

adj.: adjective.

A. S.: Anglo-Saxon.

Dan.: Danish.

Engl.: English.

f.: feminine.

Germ.: German.

gl.: glossary.

l.: line.

m.: masculine.

n.: neuter.

O. H. G.: Old High German.

S.: Saga.

Swed.: Swedish.

Ulf.: Ulfilas.

id.: idem, referring to the passage quoted or to the translation

eccl.: ecclesiastical.

metaph.: metaphorical, metaphorically.

Gr.: Greek.

cp.: compare.

freq.: frequent, frequently.

Icel.: Iceland, Icelander, Icelanders, Icelandic.

poët.: poetically.

pr.: proper, properly.

prob.: probably.

Works & Authors cited:

Alm.: Alvís-mál. (A. I.)

Fms.: Fornmanna Sögur. (E. I.)

Fs.: Forn-sögur. (D. II.)

H. E.: Historia Ecclesiastica Islandiae. (J. I.)

Hom.: Homiliu-bók. (F. II.)

Rm.: Rígsmál. (A. II.)

Sks.: Konungs Skugg-sjá. (H. II.)

Lex. Poët.: Lexicon Poëticum by Sveinbjörn Egilsson, 1860.

Rétt.: Réttarbætr. (B. II.)

Sól.: Sólarljóð. (A. III.)

Barl.: Barlaams Saga. (F. III.)

Bs.: Biskupa Sögur. (D. III.)

N. T.: New Testament.

Pass.: Passiu-Sálmar.

Vídal.: Vídalíns-Postilla.

Ann.: Íslenzkir Annálar. (D. IV.)

Fas.: Fornaldar Sögur. (C. II.)

Haustl.: Haustlöng. (A. I.)

Hkr.: Heimskringla. (E. I.)

Hm.: Hává-mál. (A. I.)

K. Þ. K.: Kristinn-réttr Þorláks ok Ketils = Kristinna-laga-þáttr. (B. I.)

Landn.: Landnáma. (D. I.)

Orkn.: Orkneyinga Saga. (E. II.)

Þd.: Þórs-drápa. (A. I.)

➞ See all works cited in the dictionary

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