eorþe

Noun

eorþe

1. Alternative form of erthe

Alternative forms

• eorðe, earþe, iorþe

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *erþō. Cognate with Old Frisian erthe (West Frisian ierde), Old Saxon ertha, Old Dutch ertha (Dutch aarde), Old High German erda (German Erde), Old Norse jǫrð (Swedish jord), Gothic 𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌸𐌰 (airþa).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeo̯rðe/

Noun

eorþe f

1. earth: ground, soil, dry land.

   Drihtnes ys eorðe, and eall þæt heo mid gefyld is; and eall mancynn þe þæron eardað is Drihtnes. --Psalm 23, King Alfred Translation (Paris Psalter)

2. Earth in the Ptolemaic cosmology, conceived as a pinenut-shaped planet at the center of the universe.
   • 10th century, "An Anglo-Saxon Manual of Astronomy":

     Sēo Eorðe stent on ġelīcnysse ānre pinn-hnyte, ⁊ sēo sunne glīt abūtan ġewislīce be Godes ġesetnysse.

     The Earth stands in the form of a pinenut, & the sun glides about it by God's ordinance.

   • 10th century, the Old English Hexameron:

     Sēo Eorðe ne liġþ on nānum þinge, ac hēo stent on lofte.

     The Earth isn't on top of anything; it floats in the air.