shieling

English

Alternative forms

• shealing
• sheeling

Etymology

From shiel, from Old Norse skjól (“shelter, cover”)^[1]. Akin to Danish skjul (“cover”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈʃiːlɪŋ/

Noun

shieling (plural shielings)

1. An area of summer pasture used for cattle, sheep etc.
   • 1997, ‘Egil's Saga’, tr. Bernard Scudder, The Sagas of Icelanders, Penguin 2001, p. 182:

     The cattle at Mosfell were kept in a shieling, and Thordis stayed there while the Thing took place.

2. A shepherd's hut or shack.
   • 2002, Joseph O'Conner, Star of the Sea, Vintage 2003, p. 39:

     Cabins and shielings had been torn down and burned.

Quotations

• For usage examples of this term, see the citations page.

References

1. ^ sheeling in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913