eldertongue

Old English · adjective

hæþen

Normalised hǣþen

Part of speech
adjective
IPA
/ˈxæː.θen/
[ˈhæː.ðen]
Syllables
ˈxæː · θen (2 syllables)
Modern English
heathenpagan

hæþen1 · adjective

Senses

  1. pagan, heathen

    An. DCCCLV Hēr hǣþene men ǣrest on Sċeapiġġe ofer winter sǣtan...⁊ þȳ ilcan ġēare [Aþelwulf cing] ferde to Rōme mid myċelre weorðnesse ⁊ þǣr wæs XII mōnoð wuniġende, ⁊ him þā hāmweard fōr ⁊ him þā Carl Francna cing his dohtor ġēaf him tō cwēne, ⁊ æfter þām tō his lēodum cōm...

    Year 855 In this year heathen men stayed on Sheppey over the winter for the first time...And in the same year [King Athelwulf] went to Rome with much honor, and stayed there for twelve months. And them he went home and King Carl [the Bald] of the Franks gave him his daughter as a queen, and after that Athelwulf returned to his people.

    The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

  2. a heathen

    ...ðā ðā hǣðenan āhēowon þæt trēow mid ormǣtre blisse, þæt hit brastliende sāh tō ðām hālgan were, hetelīċe swīðe. Þā worhte hē onġēan ðām hrēosendum trēowe þǣs Hǣlendes rōde tācn, and hit ðǣrrihte ætstōd, wende ðā onġēan, and hrēas underbæc, and fornēan offēoll ðā ðe hit ǣr forcurfon.

    Then the heathens cut down the tree with immense joy, so that, rustling, it fell towards the holy man very violently. Then he made the sign of the Savior's cross to the falling tree, and it immediately stood still, turned around, and fell backwards, and almost fell upon those who had previously cut it.

    Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church

Declension

Strong declension of hæþen
MasculineFeminineNeuter
Singular
Nominative hǣþenhǣþenuhǣþnuhǣþenohǣþnohǣþen
Accusative hǣþennehǣþenehǣþnehǣþen
Genitive hǣþeneshǣþneshǣþenrehǣþeneshǣþnes
Dative hǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenrehǣþenumhǣþnum
Instrumental hǣþenehǣþnehǣþenrehǣþenehǣþne
Plural
Nominative hǣþenehǣþnehǣþenahǣþnahǣþenehǣþnehǣþenuhǣþnuhǣþenohǣþno
Accusative hǣþenehǣþnehǣþenahǣþnahǣþenehǣþnehǣþenuhǣþnuhǣþenohǣþno
Genitive hǣþenrahǣþenrahǣþenra
Dative hǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnum
Instrumental hǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnum
Weak declension of hæþen
MasculineFeminineNeuter
Singular
Nominative hǣþenahǣþnahǣþenehǣþnehǣþenehǣþne
Accusative hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenehǣþne
Genitive hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnan
Dative hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnan
Instrumental hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnan
Plural
Nominative hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnan
Accusative hǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnanhǣþenanhǣþnan
Genitive hǣþenrahǣþenenahǣþnenahǣþenrahǣþenenahǣþnenahǣþenrahǣþenenahǣþnena
Dative hǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnum
Instrumental hǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnumhǣþenumhǣþnum

hæþen2 · noun · masculine · alternative form

Senses

  1. alternative form of heden

Declension · strong a-stem

Declension of hæþen
SingularPlural
Nominative hæþenhæþnas
Accusative hæþenhæþnas
Genitive hæþneshæþna
Dative hæþnehæþnum

All forms (26)

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *haiþin, from Proto-Germanic *haiþīnaz, probably a specifically Christian use of the base of *haiþī (“uncultivated land”). Cognate to Old Frisian hêthin, hêthen, Old High German heidan, Old Norse heiðinn, Gothic * (*haiþns, “gentile”) (attested as feminine (haiþnō)). The Germanic word is primarily an adjective. Perhaps influenced by Ancient Greek ἔθνος (éthnos, “nation, heathen”), via the loans from Greek in Coptic (hethnos) and/or Old Armenian հեթանոս (hetʻanos). The stem-vowel was influenced by haiþi (“heath”). See also Proto-Germanic *haiduz, Old…

From Proto-Germanic *hadinaz, *hidanaz (“skirt”) (compare *hōdaz (“hood”)).

Descendants

heathen

Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hæþen · CC BY-SA 4.0 licence · Attribution