húnn

See also: hunn, Hunn, and Húnn

Icelandic

A basic modern doorknob.

A flagpole's knob.

Etymology

From Old Norse húnn (“knob at the top of a mast-head”), from Proto-Germanic *hūnaz, *hūna(n)- (“top of a stick”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /hutn/

  Rhymes: -utn

Noun

húnn m (genitive singular húns, nominative plural húnar)

1. a door handle, a doorknob
2. a flagpole's knob

   Að draga fána að hún.

   To hoist a flag.

3. a bear cub

Declension

Declension of húnn (masculine)

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	húnn	húnninn	húnar	húnarnir
accusative	hún	húninn	húna	húnana
dative	húni	húninum	húnum	húnunum
genitive	húns	húnsins	húna	húnanna

References

• Guus Kroonen, “Reflections on the o/zero-Ablaut in the Germanic Iterative Verbs”, in The Indo-European Verb: Proceedings of the Conference of the Society for Indo-European Studies, Los Angeles, 13-15 September 2010, Wiesbaden: Reichert Verlag, 2012

Old Norse

Etymology 1

From Proto-Germanic *hūnaz.

Noun

húnn m (genitive húns)

1. a bear cub
   1. (endearing) a boy
2. (poetic) urchin (clarification of this definition is needed)
3. knob atop a mast-head

Declension

Declension of húnn (strong a-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	húnn	húnninn	húnar	húnarnir
accusative	hún	húninn	húna	húnana
dative	húni	húninum	húnum	húnunum
genitive	húns	húnsins	húna	húnanna

Descendants

• Icelandic: húnn
• Norwegian Nynorsk: hun
• → Old French: hune
  • Middle French: hune
    • French: hune

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

húnn m (genitive húns)

1. a die

   þeir verpa húnum

   they cast dice

Declension

Declension of húnn (strong a-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	húnn	húnninn	húnar	húnarnir
accusative	hún	húninn	húna	húnana
dative	húni	húninum	húnum	húnunum
genitive	húns	húnsins	húna	húnanna

Descendants

• Icelandic: húnn
• Norwegian Nynorsk: hon, hun
• Norwegian Bokmål: hon, hon

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “húnn”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 219; also available at the Internet Archive