Veðr

Veðr is a historical term for weather in Old Norse and early Icelandic. In Old Norse, it was a neuter noun referring to atmospheric conditions and appears in saga literature, poetry, and grammars. It is often found in descriptive passages and in kennings, where weather features as a motif or agent in nautical and seasonal imagery.

Etymology and cognates: Veðr derives from Proto-Germanic *wedōr- and is cognate with Old English weder, Old High German wetter, Swedish väder, and Danish vejr. The modern Icelandic word for weather is veður, while veðr survives mainly in archaic, literary, or etymological contexts.

Modern usage: In contemporary Icelandic, veður is the standard term for weather, and veðr is largely historical or poetic. The form appears in linguistic discussions of Old Norse, in translations of medieval texts, and in scholarly references to Norse meteorological imagery. The word also figures in discussions of the origins of the English word weather.

See also: Weather; Old Norse language; Icelandic language; Norse poetry; Germanic languages.

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