IT’S ETYMOLOGY MONDAY // And the very first word of the week is:

sky

Once upon a time, prior to the mid-13th Century, the word sky (skie, sci, skei) actually meant ‘cloud’. It originated from the Old Norse for cloud, sky. In Middle English, the meaning split to mean both ‘the clouds’ and ‘the skies’, referring to the ‘region of clouds, wind and rain’, and replacing the word heofon (heaven), which had meant ‘visible sky’, but went on to mean ‘home of God’. Today, you can see the remnants of this meaning in the place name ‘Isle of Skye’, which in Norse meant ‘Island of Clouds’.

Thank you to Steve Fendt of Tall and Tiny Tales for bringing this word to my attention.

Welcome to the very first Etymology Monday. I’ll be sharing a new word here on Notes each week as a bit of fun and, hopefully, as a way of building community. If you’ve got a word you’d like me to look up, send it my way and I’ll give you a shout out.