sterne of þe see

Middle English

Etymology

Calque of Latin Stella Maris, an epithet for the Virgin Mary. Arose as a scribal mistranscription of stilla maris (“drop of the sea”), which in turn was an interpretation of Mary's name in Aramaic, Maryam, as Hebrew מר (mar, “drop”) +‎ ים (yam, “sea”).

Proper noun

sterne of þe see

1. (Christianity) The Virgin Mary, the mother of Christ.

Related terms

• sterre of þe see
• sterne of sternes

References

• “sterne, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 10 August 2018.