The Wordhord
In Old English, a wordhord was a hoard of words — a store of language kept close, ready to be drawn on when it mattered most. To unlock the wordhord was to begin to speak with purpose and skill.
One of the earliest and most evocative uses comes from Beowulf, just as the hero prepares to speak for the first time:
Him se yldesta andswarode, The eldest of them answered,
werodes wīsa, wordhord onlēac: the leader of the warriors, unlocked his wordhoard:
“Wē synt gumcynnes Gēata lēode “We are men of the Geatish people,
and Hīgeles heoras; Beowulf is mīn nama…” Hygelac’s hearth-companions; my name is Beowulf…”
To open one’s wordhord is not simply to speak — it is to draw on knowledge, memory, and meaning, and shape them into something that can be shared.
This section gathers reflections on the structure, history, and meaning of English words. You’ll find etymology cards, seasonal explorations, and word-family notes that trace how language grows — not at random, but through stories, roots, and sound.
Each entry examines how a word was built, where it came from, and how its meaning has shifted through time, translation, and use. It’s a place for wordcraft grounded in history — practical, curious, and shaped by the belief that language is not just learnt, but forged.
Saviour – a word shaped by rescue and kingship
Luke 2:11 names Jesus as both Saviour and Messiah. This post explores how the word ‘saviour’ travelled from Latin and Greek into English, and how its earlier uses for ancient rulers are reshaped in the New Testament to describe Christ alone. Image taken on the cliffs of Anglesey.
Manger – from Latin chewing to English crib
A manger is a simple feeding trough, shaped by centuries of language change from Latin through French into English. This entry traces its history and links it with an image taken at Whipsnade, where deer gather around a real trough.
Town: the settlement that grew from a fence
A short exploration of the word ‘town’, from Old English ‘tūn’ meaning an enclosed homestead to the Greek ‘polis’ of Luke’s Gospel. The accompanying image comes from Legoland Denmark’s Small Danish Town display, echoing how communities form around shared life.
Census: one mark at a time
A short study of the word ‘census’ in Luke 2, tracing its roots from Roman record keeping to the Greek ‘apographē’. The accompanying image shows a line drawn through homemade gingerbread sensory salt, echoing the act of writing a name into a register.