earln.

Brit.

/əːl/, U.S.

/ˈər(ə)l/

Forms:

α. Old English eolr (transmission error), Old English (rare)–early Middle English heorl, Old English–Middle English eorl, Old English (rare)–Middle English eorll, Old English (rare)– earl, late Old English url, early Middle English æorl, early Middle English ærl, Middle English eerl, Middle English eorle, Middle English erl, Middle English erld, Middle English erldlis (plural; transmission error), Middle English erll, Middle English eurl (in copy of Old English charter), Middle English herl, Middle English orl, Middle English vrl, Middle English (in a late copy) vrle, Middle English–1600s earle, Middle English–1600s erl, Middle English–1600s erle; Scottish pre-1700 airle, pre-1700 earle, pre-1700 earlle, pre-1700 eirl, pre-1700 eirle, pre-1700 eirll, pre-1700 el, pre-1700 erl, pre-1700 erle, pre-1700 erll, pre-1700 erlle, pre-1700 errl, pre-1700 eyrle, pre-1700 herll.

β. Middle English ȝerle, Middle English ȝierl, Middle English ȝorle, Middle English–1500s ȝerl, Middle English–1600s yerle, 1500s yearle, 1500s yerlle, 1700s yearl; Scottish pre-1700 ȝerle, pre-1700 ȝerll, pre-1700 ierll, pre-1700 yerl, pre-1700 yerll, 1800s yearl, 1800s– yerl, 1800s– yirl, 1900s– yorl.

γ. Middle English erel, Middle English erell, Middle English erille, Middle English errel, Middle English errelle, Middle English eryl, 1500s eerele; Scottish pre-1700 earel, pre-1700 earell, pre-1700 earill, pre-1700 erell, pre-1700 eril, pre-1700 erill, pre-1700 erille, pre-1700 eryl, pre-1700 eryle, pre-1700 eryll; N. E. D. (1891) also records a form Middle English errille.

δ. Scottish pre-1700 yearil.

Origin: A word inherited from Germanic.

Etymology: Cognate with Old Saxon erl man, Old High German erl- (in personal names), Old Icelandic earl , jarl nobleman, warrior, leader (compare jarl n.), Norn (Shetland) iarl , Old Swedish iärl , iarl (early modern Swedish järl , jerl ), Old Danish ierl , jarl (Danish jarl ), probably < a suffixed form of the same Germanic base as Old Icelandic jara fight, battle, further etymology uncertain (perhaps related to the Germanic base of Old Icelandic ern brisk, vigorous: see earnest n.¹); compare also (with different forms of the suffix) Early Runic erilaR man of high status, (perhaps) rune-master, and post-classical Latin Eruli (also Heruli), Byzantine Greek Ἔρουλοι, the name of an East Germanic tribe (3rd cent.)Notes on forms. The β. forms show development of a palatal on-glide. The γ. forms show development of an epenthetic vowel between r and l . The δ. forms show both of these features. Notes on specific senses. In sense 2 apparently originally showing a semantic loan from the early Scandinavian cognate. The semantic development of the word and the political implications of its use in late Anglo-Saxon England have been much discussed. For a recent summary and further discussion see S. M. Pons-Sanz Lexical Effects Anglo-Scand. Ling. Contact on Old Eng. (2013) 80–1, 213–15. In sense 3 after senses of classical Latin comes (chiefly post-classical uses) and Anglo-Norman and Old French conte count n.², e.g. in quot. OE at sense 3a with reference to the Count of Flanders (Old French Conte de Flandre ), in quots. lOE², c1300 at sense 3a to the Count of Anjou (Old French Conte d'Ango ), etc.; compare also:1258 Proclam. Henry III in Trans. Philol. Soc. (1868–9) 18 Henri par la grace deu Rey de Engleterre, Sire de Irlande, Duc de Normandie de Aquiten et Cunte de Angou [Eng. Henri þurȝ godes fultume king on Engleneloande, Lhoauerd on Yrloande, Duk on Normandie on Aquitaine and eorl on Aniow]. Sense 3b in particular reflects changes in the composition of the English aristocracy after the Norman Conquest. For a discussion of the development of the rank and office of earl in the period from 1000 to 1300 in their historical context, especially in comparison to the originally continental rank of count, see D. Crouch Image of Aristocracy in Brit. (1992) 32-62.

a. In Anglo-Saxon England: a man of noble birth or rank, esp. as distinguished from a ceorl or freeman of the lowest class (see churl n. 2a). historical in later use.Occasionally in extended use, apparently in sense ‘leader, lord, master’ (cf. e.g. quot. OE¹). In this use perhaps partly reflecting influence from sense 2. Cf. also the later sense ‘any great noble’ (see sense 3a).Quot. lOE is a late copy of a 7th-cent. legal code.Quot. 1614 is a translation of (a version of) quot. OE³.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social class > nobility > [noun] > noble person or man

earleOE

wyeOE

freeOE

nobleman?c1225

athelc1275

noblec1325

douzepersc1330

freelya1350

hathela1350

gentlec1400

nobleness1490

gentle blood1575

comes1583

altezza1595

birth1596

nobility1841

eOE Laws of Ælfred (Corpus Cambr. 173) iv. §2. 50 Swa we eac settað be eallum hadum, ge ceorle ge eorle.

OE Antwerp-London Gloss. (2011) 95 Dux, heretoga uel heorl.

OE Battle of Maldon (1942) 132 Eode swa anræd eorl to þam ceorle, ægþer hyra oðrum yfeles hogode.

OE Laws: Geþyncðo (Corpus Cambr.) i. 456 Hwilum wæs, þæt leod & lagu for be geþingðum; & þa wæron þeodwitan wurðscipes wurðe, ælc be his mæðe, ge eorl ge ceorl, ge þegen ge þeoden.

lOE Laws of Æðelberht (Rochester) xiii. 4 Gif on eorles tune man mannan ofslæhþ, xii scillinga gebete.

1614 J. Selden Titles of Honor 268 An old Fragment thus: The wisest of the people were..worship worthy euery one in his rank,..Earle, Churl, Thane, and Underthane.

1878 Encycl. Brit. VIII. 274/2 Each man, earl or churl, held his place strictly as a member of the community, bound by its laws, and owing to it his duties in war and in peace.

1928 R. W. Chambers in J. A. Hammerton Universal Hist. World IV. xciii. 2454/1 Suppose the earl's son kills the churl's son. It is a serious matter.

a1991 N. Frye Rencontre in Coll. Wks. (2002) X. i. i. 72 The direction of one's mythological outlook at that period would depend on whether one was an earl or a churl, whether one was a member of the warrior aristocracy or of the small farmer or peasant class.

†b. poetic. A warrior; (also more generally) a man. Obsolete.Only in Old English.

ΘΚΠ

society > armed hostility > warrior > [noun]

wyec900

rinkeOE

earlOE

manlOE

champion?c1225

warrer?c1225

drightmanc1275

here-dringc1275

here-gumec1275

here-kempec1275

wal-kempc1275

warrior1297

battlerc1300

fighterc1300

battle-wrighta1400

man-of-war1449

frekec1475

war-manc1485

combatant1489

Mars1565

warfarer1591

combater1598

Mavortian1598

brave1601

fire-eater1792

war-wolf1810

war-hound1812

war-dog1846

toa1860

Mavors1868

fightist1877

ninja1964

simba1964

OE Cynewulf Crist II 546 Hwite cwoman eorla eadgiefan englas togeanes.

OE Riddle 46 7 Ealra wæron fife eorla ond idesa insittendra.

OE Beowulf (2008) 357 Þær Hroðgar sæt..mid his eorla gedriht.

2. Originally: a Scandinavian ruler or great noble below the rank of king, the equivalent of jarl (see jarl n.); esp. a Scandinavian noble holding power in the Danelaw. Hence, in late Anglo-Saxon England (esp. under Cnut and his successors): an official equivalent in rank to ealdorman (ealdorman n. 1); the governor of one of the great land divisions, Wessex, East Anglia, Mercia or Northumbria. Also used as a title placed immediately before (and in Old English also immediately after) a name. Now historical.After use had been extended to those holding rank outside the Danelaw, the term largely replaced the title of ealdorman, with which it had become nearly synonymous. In post-classical Latin British sources, the Anglo-Saxon title is frequently rendered by dux and also, especially in historical use, as comes; cf. sense 3.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > sovereign ruler or monarch > king > [noun] > underking > Norse or Danish

earlOE

jarl1820

OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.i) anno 1030 Her wæs Olaf cing ofslagen on Norwegon of his agenum folce, & wæs syððan halig; & þæs geres ær ðam forferde Hacun se dohtiga eorl on sæ.

OE Charter: Earl Leofric & his Wife Godgifu to St Mary's Church, Worcester (Sawyer 1232) in A. J. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Charters (1956) 210 Leofric eorl & his gebedda habbað geunnen twa land for Godes lufan..into þære halgan stowe sancta Marian mynstre.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1048 Mann sette þa Oddan to eorle ofer Defenascire & ofer Sumersæton.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 6530 A gret erl of þis lond, godwine was is name.

c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 125 (MED) Þe Erl Godwyne, þat þo was þe grettest lorde of al Engeland next þe kyng.

1543 ( Chron. J. Hardyng (1812) 233 (MED) The earle Tosty then of Northumberlande, That brother was vnto the kyng Herolde.

1587 R. Holinshed et al. Hist. Eng. (new ed.) viii. viii. 196/1 (heading) in Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) I Harold the sonne of earle Goodwine crowned, proclaimed, and consecrated king; his subtill and adulatorie meanes to win the peoples fauour.

1612 S. Daniel First Pt. Hist. Eng. i. 62 Braue deedes in the North, as Harold, Earle of Westsex, the sonne of the Earle Godwyn performed against the welsh in the west.

1659 W. Prynne Historiarchos 275 Prince Edward was called out of Normandy, and elected King, principally by the help and counsel of Earle Godwin.

1706 J. Hughes in Compl. Hist. Eng. I. 96/2 Godwin sought to greaten himself by the Conquest of Wales..; which his Son Harold, Earl of the West-Saxons, effected, by vanquishing the two Welsh kings, Ris and Griffith.

1761 D. Hume Hist. Eng. I. iii. 72 Canute..created Thurkill earl or duke of East Anglia.

1867 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest I. vi. 470 Cnut..appointed Earls over Northumberland, Mercia, and East-Anglia.

1995 B. Yorke Wessex in Early Middle Ages vii. 316 The revenue from the towns was split, with two-thirds going to the king and one-third to the earl.

3. After the Norman Conquest, a title more generally regarded as equivalent to Latin comes (see count n.²).

†a. With reference to the feudal nobility: a noble or prince bearing the Romance title of Count (see count n.² 1); (hence more generally) any great noble. Obsolete (historical in later use).

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > earl or count > feudal

earlOE

consula1513

OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 1071 Baldawine eorl [of Flanders] forðferde, & Arnulf his sunu feng to þan rice.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1101 Þa..wurdon þa heafodmen her on lande wiðerræden togeanes þam cynge..þurh þone eorl Rodbert of Normandig þe mid unfriðe hider to lande fundode.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1124 Se ilce Willelm hefde numen Fulkes eorles gingre dohter to wife of Angeow, & forði se king of France & ealle þas eorles heolden mid him.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 3989 Tatt enngell nohht ne comm. Till kingess. ne till eorless.

a1200 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Trin. Cambr.) 324 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 230 We mihten habben more an heuene þa[n] ȝierles and kinges.

c1300 Life & Martyrdom Thomas Becket (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 509 Sire Conan Eorl of Bretaigne: and the Eorl John of Angeo... And Eorl Williem of Ferers.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1876) VI. 251 Rouland eorl of þe paleys [L. comes palatii].

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13270 Noght o riche kinges kin, Ne of erel þan gret baron.

Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 141 Erle, lorde, comes.

a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 1078 Duke, Errelle & eke Barone.

?c1450 (?a1400) J. Wyclif Eng. Wks. (1880) 386 Dukis & erlis, barons & knyȝtis.

1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) lvi. 82 The sone of an erle of that Countre.

c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 63^v Ascalaphus a skathil duke..And Helinus a hede vrle hadyn to gedur Thretty shippes.

1589 R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations i. 19 Thus by the imprudent and foolish hardines of that French Earle [sc. Robert, Count of Artois], the Frenchmen were discomfited.

1627 G. Richardson Of State of Europe ii. 63 Henry the second, son to Geffrey Plantaginet Earle of Aniou in France, & Maude the Empresse.

1799 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (ed. 2) I. 354 Christianity..wrested in France enormous possessions out of the hands of the Earls and Barons.

b. spec. In England, Scotland, and Ireland: the title of a specific order of rank, corresponding to Count in the nobility of other European nations (in the modern peerage ranking next below a marquess, and next above a viscount).Under the Norman kings the title of earl (count) implied the governorship or the feudal lordship of a county (county n.¹ 2a); subsequently the territorial designation (Earl of Derby, of Leicester, etc.) became, as in other degrees of the peerage, purely formal, and in some cases a surname is used instead (as Earl Brownlow or Earl Cowper). When a duke or a marquess has an earldom as his second title, this is ‘by courtesy’ given to his eldest son: thus the heir of the Duke of Northumberland is Earl Percy while that of the Marquess of Winchester is the Earl of Wiltshire.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > earl or count

earlOE

OE Royal Charter: William I to Archbishops, Bishops, & Others, supporting Rights of Abbot Baldwin in D. C. Douglas Feudal Documents Abbey Bury St. Edmunds (1932) 53 Þa witan,..Thomas arcebiscop of Eoferwic & Odo biscop of Baius min broþor & eorl ofer Cent [L. comes Cantie] & maniga oðra biscopas..& eorlas & ealle þa heafodmenn ures rices.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1094 Wið sum þæra dæle gefeaht Hugo eorl of Scrobscire & hi aflymde.

?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 On þis gær wolde þe king Stephne tæcen Rodbert eorl of Gloucestre.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 10723 (MED) Þe king..bileuede þe erl marschal & þe erl of chestre þere.

1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) ii. 234 Twa erlis alsua with him war.

a1500 Warkworth's Chron. (1839) 1 Lorde Stafforde was made Erle of Devynschire.

1556 in J. G. Nichols Chron. Grey Friars 54 Sir John Dudley that was amrelle of the see was made yerle of Warwyk.

c1600 Wriothesley's Chron. Eng. (1875) I. 41 Moste of the Kings Councell, as erles, lordes and nobles of this realme.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 (1623) ii. ii. 78 The Earle of Warwick Shall one day make the Duke of Yorke a King.

1703 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion II. viii. 471 Lord Digby..should find the best way to make the Earl of Antrim to communicate the Affair to him, and to wish his Assistance.

1768 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. i. xii. 310 An earl is a title of nobility.

1816 W. Scott Old Mortality xiii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 283 Levied an armed regiment under the Yearl of Angus.

1878 Canada Law Jrnl. Nov. 296/1 After Lord Eldon's retirement no Lord Chancellor was made an earl until Lord Cottenham's promotion on his retirement in 1850.

1937 Life 3 May 77/3 When his father the Admiral died last year, David Beatty became Earl Beatty.

2011 Aberdeen Evening Express (Nexis) 29 Apr. 4 William also became the Earl of Strathearn and received the title of Baron Carrickfergus.

†c. historical. Any of the officers called comites (see comes n.) under the later Roman Empire. Earl of the Saxon Shore: = Count of the Saxon Shore at count n.² 2. Obsolete.In modern references count n.² 2 is now always employed in this sense.

ΚΠ

a1460 Knyghthode & Bataile (Pembr. Cambr. 243) l. 1545 (MED) Aftir that, the Duke & Erlys have The pretory, a grounde out set therfore.

1573 T. Twyne tr. H. Llwyd Breuiary of Britayne f. 12 Sextus Rufus. in his booke de Notitia Prouinciarum, of the knowledge of Prouinces: speaketh of the Earle of the Saxon shoare, alonge both the Britaynes.

1577 R. Holinshed Hist. Eng. 103/2 in Chron. I Nectaridus one of the Emperoures house Earle of the Sea coast hauyng charge of the partyes towardes the Sea, was slayne.

1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. vii. iii. 286/2 In Britaine an Office of Charge was instituted to defend the Coasts from their irruptions, the Captaine whereof was commonly called the Count or Earle of the Saxon Shoare.

1671 F. Philipps Regale Necessarium xv. 419 Earls..were accompted by the Civil Law to be as the Emperors more especial Servants or Domesticks.

1704 W. Atwood Superiority Crown Eng. vi. 59 The old Romans..had a Comes Littoris Saxonici, an Earl of the Saxon Shoar.

d. In the peerages of other countries: a high-ranking nobleman, roughly corresponding to the English, Scottish, and Irish earl. Now chiefly historical.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social class > nobility > [noun] > noble person or man > of other foreign countries

earl1585

starosta1607

illustrissimo1623

fidalgo1638

nawab1682

1585 tr. Explan. True & Lawful Right & Tytle, Anthonie King of Portugall 27 Foure or fiue horsemen..(of the which number was Fraunces of Portugall Erle of Vimioso).

1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. (1682) x. 460 (margin) A single Combat between a Spanish Earl and a Scottish Traveller.

1709 A. Hill Full Acct. Ottoman Empire xviii. 142 A very rich and noble Earl, extreamly favour'd by the Græcian Emperor.

1893 Cornhill Mag. Dec. 586 An English lord..and a Japanese earl..took their seats in silent sadness.

1904 F. Brinkley China (new ed.) XII. App. 260 After the end of the rebellion Li was made an Earl, and in 1867 he became Viceroy of Hu-Kuang.

1995 S. Redo in M. C. Bassiouni Contrib. Specialized Inst. to United Nations Criminal Justice Program 131 On 22 September 1830 the Hungarian earl Istvan Szechenyi wrote in his diary ‘Only there [etc.]’.

†4. A director, a superintendent. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > control > person in control > [noun] > superintendent

architector1461

earl1483

overlookera1513

superior1554

superintender1573

superintendent1603

surintendent1645

epistates1651

intendant1652

referee1705

supercargo1713

surveillant1819

super1849

supe1908

1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende f. ccclxxxij/1 Thenne the erle of the sacrefyses gaue moche money.

Phrases

Earl of Hell n. chiefly Scottish (a name for) a fearsome or malevolent person or being, spec. the Devil; also in similative use, esp. in as black (also filthy) as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat.

ΚΠ

1817 Edinb. Monthly Mag. May 161/1 This bold rebel was..the immediate successor of another doughty chief, usually known by the appropriate title of the Earl of Hell.

1893 D. MacNicol Sprigs of Heather 148 Here entereth Tibby Flounderfeet, with face as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat, bearing a string of fresh herring.

1958 J. Kesson White Bird Passes v. 68 Come here till I give your face a dicht. It always gets as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat.

1993 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 23 Sept. 14 She roughly rearranged the tousled ginger carpet above a face as filthy as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat.

2006 C. Ferguson Between Bridge & River 22 I won't discuss Jesus with you, Margaret... You are in the employ of the Earl of Hell.

Compounds

Earl Marcher n. (plural Earls Marcher) now historical the military governor or ruler of a border province; a margrave; cf. marcher lord n. at marcher n.¹ Compounds 2.

ΘΚΠ

society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > margrave

margrave1551

Earl Marcher1630

society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > sovereign ruler or monarch > other independent rulers > [noun] > landgrave, margrave, or wildgrave

landgravea1513

margrave1551

Earl Marcher1630

wildgrave1798

1630 in tr. G. Botero Relations Famous Kingdomes World (rev. ed.) 402 Saros Patak, where the Palatine or Earle-marcher of that part of Hungaria..usually keeps his residence.

a1871 T. Greenwood Cathedra Petri (1872) VI. xiv. v. 205 The deadly enmity of the earl marcher Roger Mortimer had driven Gilbert de Clare from the court.

2007 H. James in J. W. Evans & J. M. Wooding St. David of Wales iii. 61 The Norman Earls Marcher and their knights reshaped the landscape.

† earl-right n. Obsolete the right or privilege of an earl.Only in Old English in a law code attributed to Wulfstan, and perhaps coined by him.In quot. 1875 with direct reference to use of the word in quot. lOE.

ΚΠ

lOE Laws: Geþyncðo (Rochester) v. 458 Gif þegen geþeah, þæt he wearð to eorle, þonne wæs he syððan eorlrihtes weorðe [L. (Quadripartitus) dignus rectitudine comitis et honore].

1875 W. Stubbs Constit. Hist. (ed. 2) I. v. 80 The..man who has ‘thriven to eorl-right’, or who has his forty hides.]

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	earl
释义	earln. Brit. /əːl/, U.S. /ˈər(ə)l/ Forms: α. Old English eolr (transmission error), Old English (rare)–early Middle English heorl, Old English–Middle English eorl, Old English (rare)–Middle English eorll, Old English (rare)– earl, late Old English url, early Middle English æorl, early Middle English ærl, Middle English eerl, Middle English eorle, Middle English erl, Middle English erld, Middle English erldlis (plural; transmission error), Middle English erll, Middle English eurl (in copy of Old English charter), Middle English herl, Middle English orl, Middle English vrl, Middle English (in a late copy) vrle, Middle English–1600s earle, Middle English–1600s erl, Middle English–1600s erle; Scottish pre-1700 airle, pre-1700 earle, pre-1700 earlle, pre-1700 eirl, pre-1700 eirle, pre-1700 eirll, pre-1700 el, pre-1700 erl, pre-1700 erle, pre-1700 erll, pre-1700 erlle, pre-1700 errl, pre-1700 eyrle, pre-1700 herll. β. Middle English ȝerle, Middle English ȝierl, Middle English ȝorle, Middle English–1500s ȝerl, Middle English–1600s yerle, 1500s yearle, 1500s yerlle, 1700s yearl; Scottish pre-1700 ȝerle, pre-1700 ȝerll, pre-1700 ierll, pre-1700 yerl, pre-1700 yerll, 1800s yearl, 1800s– yerl, 1800s– yirl, 1900s– yorl. γ. Middle English erel, Middle English erell, Middle English erille, Middle English errel, Middle English errelle, Middle English eryl, 1500s eerele; Scottish pre-1700 earel, pre-1700 earell, pre-1700 earill, pre-1700 erell, pre-1700 eril, pre-1700 erill, pre-1700 erille, pre-1700 eryl, pre-1700 eryle, pre-1700 eryll; N. E. D. (1891) also records a form Middle English errille. δ. Scottish pre-1700 yearil. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Cognate with Old Saxon erl man, Old High German erl- (in personal names), Old Icelandic earl , jarl nobleman, warrior, leader (compare jarl n.), Norn (Shetland) iarl , Old Swedish iärl , iarl (early modern Swedish järl , jerl ), Old Danish ierl , jarl (Danish jarl ), probably < a suffixed form of the same Germanic base as Old Icelandic jara fight, battle, further etymology uncertain (perhaps related to the Germanic base of Old Icelandic ern brisk, vigorous: see earnest n.¹); compare also (with different forms of the suffix) Early Runic erilaR man of high status, (perhaps) rune-master, and post-classical Latin Eruli (also Heruli), Byzantine Greek Ἔρουλοι, the name of an East Germanic tribe (3rd cent.)Notes on forms. The β. forms show development of a palatal on-glide. The γ. forms show development of an epenthetic vowel between r and l . The δ. forms show both of these features. Notes on specific senses. In sense 2 apparently originally showing a semantic loan from the early Scandinavian cognate. The semantic development of the word and the political implications of its use in late Anglo-Saxon England have been much discussed. For a recent summary and further discussion see S. M. Pons-Sanz Lexical Effects Anglo-Scand. Ling. Contact on Old Eng. (2013) 80–1, 213–15. In sense 3 after senses of classical Latin comes (chiefly post-classical uses) and Anglo-Norman and Old French conte count n.², e.g. in quot. OE at sense 3a with reference to the Count of Flanders (Old French Conte de Flandre ), in quots. lOE², c1300 at sense 3a to the Count of Anjou (Old French Conte d'Ango ), etc.; compare also:1258 Proclam. Henry III in Trans. Philol. Soc. (1868–9) 18 Henri par la grace deu Rey de Engleterre, Sire de Irlande, Duc de Normandie de Aquiten et Cunte de Angou [Eng. Henri þurȝ godes fultume king on Engleneloande, Lhoauerd on Yrloande, Duk on Normandie on Aquitaine and eorl on Aniow]. Sense 3b in particular reflects changes in the composition of the English aristocracy after the Norman Conquest. For a discussion of the development of the rank and office of earl in the period from 1000 to 1300 in their historical context, especially in comparison to the originally continental rank of count, see D. Crouch Image of Aristocracy in Brit. (1992) 32-62. 1. a. In Anglo-Saxon England: a man of noble birth or rank, esp. as distinguished from a ceorl or freeman of the lowest class (see churl n. 2a). historical in later use.Occasionally in extended use, apparently in sense ‘leader, lord, master’ (cf. e.g. quot. OE¹). In this use perhaps partly reflecting influence from sense 2. Cf. also the later sense ‘any great noble’ (see sense 3a).Quot. lOE is a late copy of a 7th-cent. legal code.Quot. 1614 is a translation of (a version of) quot. OE³. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > [noun] > noble person or man earleOE wyeOE freeOE nobleman?c1225 athelc1275 noblec1325 douzepersc1330 freelya1350 hathela1350 gentlec1400 nobleness1490 gentle blood1575 comes1583 altezza1595 birth1596 nobility1841 eOE Laws of Ælfred (Corpus Cambr. 173) iv. §2. 50 Swa we eac settað be eallum hadum, ge ceorle ge eorle. OE Antwerp-London Gloss. (2011) 95 Dux, heretoga uel heorl. OE Battle of Maldon (1942) 132 Eode swa anræd eorl to þam ceorle, ægþer hyra oðrum yfeles hogode. OE Laws: Geþyncðo (Corpus Cambr.) i. 456 Hwilum wæs, þæt leod & lagu for be geþingðum; & þa wæron þeodwitan wurðscipes wurðe, ælc be his mæðe, ge eorl ge ceorl, ge þegen ge þeoden. lOE Laws of Æðelberht (Rochester) xiii. 4 Gif on eorles tune man mannan ofslæhþ, xii scillinga gebete. 1614 J. Selden Titles of Honor 268 An old Fragment thus: The wisest of the people were..worship worthy euery one in his rank,..Earle, Churl, Thane, and Underthane. 1878 Encycl. Brit. VIII. 274/2 Each man, earl or churl, held his place strictly as a member of the community, bound by its laws, and owing to it his duties in war and in peace. 1928 R. W. Chambers in J. A. Hammerton Universal Hist. World IV. xciii. 2454/1 Suppose the earl's son kills the churl's son. It is a serious matter. a1991 N. Frye Rencontre in Coll. Wks. (2002) X. i. i. 72 The direction of one's mythological outlook at that period would depend on whether one was an earl or a churl, whether one was a member of the warrior aristocracy or of the small farmer or peasant class. †b. poetic. A warrior; (also more generally) a man. Obsolete.Only in Old English. ΘΚΠ society > armed hostility > warrior > [noun] wyec900 rinkeOE earlOE manlOE champion?c1225 warrer?c1225 drightmanc1275 here-dringc1275 here-gumec1275 here-kempec1275 wal-kempc1275 warrior1297 battlerc1300 fighterc1300 battle-wrighta1400 man-of-war1449 frekec1475 war-manc1485 combatant1489 Mars1565 warfarer1591 combater1598 Mavortian1598 brave1601 fire-eater1792 war-wolf1810 war-hound1812 war-dog1846 toa1860 Mavors1868 fightist1877 ninja1964 simba1964 OE Cynewulf Crist II 546 Hwite cwoman eorla eadgiefan englas togeanes. OE Riddle 46 7 Ealra wæron fife eorla ond idesa insittendra. OE Beowulf (2008) 357 Þær Hroðgar sæt..mid his eorla gedriht. 2. Originally: a Scandinavian ruler or great noble below the rank of king, the equivalent of jarl (see jarl n.); esp. a Scandinavian noble holding power in the Danelaw. Hence, in late Anglo-Saxon England (esp. under Cnut and his successors): an official equivalent in rank to ealdorman (ealdorman n. 1); the governor of one of the great land divisions, Wessex, East Anglia, Mercia or Northumbria. Also used as a title placed immediately before (and in Old English also immediately after) a name. Now historical.After use had been extended to those holding rank outside the Danelaw, the term largely replaced the title of ealdorman, with which it had become nearly synonymous. In post-classical Latin British sources, the Anglo-Saxon title is frequently rendered by dux and also, especially in historical use, as comes; cf. sense 3. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > sovereign ruler or monarch > king > [noun] > underking > Norse or Danish earlOE jarl1820 OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.i) anno 1030 Her wæs Olaf cing ofslagen on Norwegon of his agenum folce, & wæs syððan halig; & þæs geres ær ðam forferde Hacun se dohtiga eorl on sæ. OE Charter: Earl Leofric & his Wife Godgifu to St Mary's Church, Worcester (Sawyer 1232) in A. J. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Charters (1956) 210 Leofric eorl & his gebedda habbað geunnen twa land for Godes lufan..into þære halgan stowe sancta Marian mynstre. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1048 Mann sette þa Oddan to eorle ofer Defenascire & ofer Sumersæton. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 6530 A gret erl of þis lond, godwine was is name. c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 125 (MED) Þe Erl Godwyne, þat þo was þe grettest lorde of al Engeland next þe kyng. 1543 ( Chron. J. Hardyng (1812) 233 (MED) The earle Tosty then of Northumberlande, That brother was vnto the kyng Herolde. 1587 R. Holinshed et al. Hist. Eng. (new ed.) viii. viii. 196/1 (heading) in Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) I Harold the sonne of earle Goodwine crowned, proclaimed, and consecrated king; his subtill and adulatorie meanes to win the peoples fauour. 1612 S. Daniel First Pt. Hist. Eng. i. 62 Braue deedes in the North, as Harold, Earle of Westsex, the sonne of the Earle Godwyn performed against the welsh in the west. 1659 W. Prynne Historiarchos 275 Prince Edward was called out of Normandy, and elected King, principally by the help and counsel of Earle Godwin. 1706 J. Hughes in Compl. Hist. Eng. I. 96/2 Godwin sought to greaten himself by the Conquest of Wales..; which his Son Harold, Earl of the West-Saxons, effected, by vanquishing the two Welsh kings, Ris and Griffith. 1761 D. Hume Hist. Eng. I. iii. 72 Canute..created Thurkill earl or duke of East Anglia. 1867 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest I. vi. 470 Cnut..appointed Earls over Northumberland, Mercia, and East-Anglia. 1995 B. Yorke Wessex in Early Middle Ages vii. 316 The revenue from the towns was split, with two-thirds going to the king and one-third to the earl. 3. After the Norman Conquest, a title more generally regarded as equivalent to Latin comes (see count n.²). †a. With reference to the feudal nobility: a noble or prince bearing the Romance title of Count (see count n.² 1); (hence more generally) any great noble. Obsolete (historical in later use). ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > earl or count > feudal earlOE consula1513 OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 1071 Baldawine eorl [of Flanders] forðferde, & Arnulf his sunu feng to þan rice. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1101 Þa..wurdon þa heafodmen her on lande wiðerræden togeanes þam cynge..þurh þone eorl Rodbert of Normandig þe mid unfriðe hider to lande fundode. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1124 Se ilce Willelm hefde numen Fulkes eorles gingre dohter to wife of Angeow, & forði se king of France & ealle þas eorles heolden mid him. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 3989 Tatt enngell nohht ne comm. Till kingess. ne till eorless. a1200 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Trin. Cambr.) 324 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 230 We mihten habben more an heuene þa[n] ȝierles and kinges. c1300 Life & Martyrdom Thomas Becket (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 509 Sire Conan Eorl of Bretaigne: and the Eorl John of Angeo... And Eorl Williem of Ferers. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1876) VI. 251 Rouland eorl of þe paleys [L. comes palatii]. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13270 Noght o riche kinges kin, Ne of erel þan gret baron. Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 141 Erle, lorde, comes. a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 1078 Duke, Errelle & eke Barone. ?c1450 (?a1400) J. Wyclif Eng. Wks. (1880) 386 Dukis & erlis, barons & knyȝtis. 1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) lvi. 82 The sone of an erle of that Countre. c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 63^v Ascalaphus a skathil duke..And Helinus a hede vrle hadyn to gedur Thretty shippes. 1589 R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations i. 19 Thus by the imprudent and foolish hardines of that French Earle [sc. Robert, Count of Artois], the Frenchmen were discomfited. 1627 G. Richardson Of State of Europe ii. 63 Henry the second, son to Geffrey Plantaginet Earle of Aniou in France, & Maude the Empresse. 1799 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (ed. 2) I. 354 Christianity..wrested in France enormous possessions out of the hands of the Earls and Barons. b. spec. In England, Scotland, and Ireland: the title of a specific order of rank, corresponding to Count in the nobility of other European nations (in the modern peerage ranking next below a marquess, and next above a viscount).Under the Norman kings the title of earl (count) implied the governorship or the feudal lordship of a county (county n.¹ 2a); subsequently the territorial designation (Earl of Derby, of Leicester, etc.) became, as in other degrees of the peerage, purely formal, and in some cases a surname is used instead (as Earl Brownlow or Earl Cowper). When a duke or a marquess has an earldom as his second title, this is ‘by courtesy’ given to his eldest son: thus the heir of the Duke of Northumberland is Earl Percy while that of the Marquess of Winchester is the Earl of Wiltshire. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > earl or count earlOE OE Royal Charter: William I to Archbishops, Bishops, & Others, supporting Rights of Abbot Baldwin in D. C. Douglas Feudal Documents Abbey Bury St. Edmunds (1932) 53 Þa witan,..Thomas arcebiscop of Eoferwic & Odo biscop of Baius min broþor & eorl ofer Cent [L. comes Cantie] & maniga oðra biscopas..& eorlas & ealle þa heafodmenn ures rices. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1094 Wið sum þæra dæle gefeaht Hugo eorl of Scrobscire & hi aflymde. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 On þis gær wolde þe king Stephne tæcen Rodbert eorl of Gloucestre. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 10723 (MED) Þe king..bileuede þe erl marschal & þe erl of chestre þere. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) ii. 234 Twa erlis alsua with him war. a1500 Warkworth's Chron. (1839) 1 Lorde Stafforde was made Erle of Devynschire. 1556 in J. G. Nichols Chron. Grey Friars 54 Sir John Dudley that was amrelle of the see was made yerle of Warwyk. c1600 Wriothesley's Chron. Eng. (1875) I. 41 Moste of the Kings Councell, as erles, lordes and nobles of this realme. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 (1623) ii. ii. 78 The Earle of Warwick Shall one day make the Duke of Yorke a King. View more context for this quotation 1703 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion II. viii. 471 Lord Digby..should find the best way to make the Earl of Antrim to communicate the Affair to him, and to wish his Assistance. 1768 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. i. xii. 310 An earl is a title of nobility. 1816 W. Scott Old Mortality xiii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 283 Levied an armed regiment under the Yearl of Angus. 1878 Canada Law Jrnl. Nov. 296/1 After Lord Eldon's retirement no Lord Chancellor was made an earl until Lord Cottenham's promotion on his retirement in 1850. 1937 Life 3 May 77/3 When his father the Admiral died last year, David Beatty became Earl Beatty. 2011 Aberdeen Evening Express (Nexis) 29 Apr. 4 William also became the Earl of Strathearn and received the title of Baron Carrickfergus. †c. historical. Any of the officers called comites (see comes n.) under the later Roman Empire. Earl of the Saxon Shore: = Count of the Saxon Shore at count n.² 2. Obsolete.In modern references count n.² 2 is now always employed in this sense. ΚΠ a1460 Knyghthode & Bataile (Pembr. Cambr. 243) l. 1545 (MED) Aftir that, the Duke & Erlys have The pretory, a grounde out set therfore. 1573 T. Twyne tr. H. Llwyd Breuiary of Britayne f. 12 Sextus Rufus. in his booke de Notitia Prouinciarum, of the knowledge of Prouinces: speaketh of the Earle of the Saxon shoare, alonge both the Britaynes. 1577 R. Holinshed Hist. Eng. 103/2 in Chron. I Nectaridus one of the Emperoures house Earle of the Sea coast hauyng charge of the partyes towardes the Sea, was slayne. 1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. vii. iii. 286/2 In Britaine an Office of Charge was instituted to defend the Coasts from their irruptions, the Captaine whereof was commonly called the Count or Earle of the Saxon Shoare. 1671 F. Philipps Regale Necessarium xv. 419 Earls..were accompted by the Civil Law to be as the Emperors more especial Servants or Domesticks. 1704 W. Atwood Superiority Crown Eng. vi. 59 The old Romans..had a Comes Littoris Saxonici, an Earl of the Saxon Shoar. d. In the peerages of other countries: a high-ranking nobleman, roughly corresponding to the English, Scottish, and Irish earl. Now chiefly historical. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > [noun] > noble person or man > of other foreign countries earl1585 starosta1607 illustrissimo1623 fidalgo1638 nawab1682 1585 tr. Explan. True & Lawful Right & Tytle, Anthonie King of Portugall 27 Foure or fiue horsemen..(of the which number was Fraunces of Portugall Erle of Vimioso). 1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. (1682) x. 460 (margin) A single Combat between a Spanish Earl and a Scottish Traveller. 1709 A. Hill Full Acct. Ottoman Empire xviii. 142 A very rich and noble Earl, extreamly favour'd by the Græcian Emperor. 1893 Cornhill Mag. Dec. 586 An English lord..and a Japanese earl..took their seats in silent sadness. 1904 F. Brinkley China (new ed.) XII. App. 260 After the end of the rebellion Li was made an Earl, and in 1867 he became Viceroy of Hu-Kuang. 1995 S. Redo in M. C. Bassiouni Contrib. Specialized Inst. to United Nations Criminal Justice Program 131 On 22 September 1830 the Hungarian earl Istvan Szechenyi wrote in his diary ‘Only there [etc.]’. †4. A director, a superintendent. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > authority > control > person in control > [noun] > superintendent architector1461 earl1483 overlookera1513 superior1554 superintender1573 superintendent1603 surintendent1645 epistates1651 intendant1652 referee1705 supercargo1713 surveillant1819 super1849 supe1908 1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende f. ccclxxxij/1 Thenne the erle of the sacrefyses gaue moche money. Phrases Earl of Hell n. chiefly Scottish (a name for) a fearsome or malevolent person or being, spec. the Devil; also in similative use, esp. in as black (also filthy) as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat. ΚΠ 1817 Edinb. Monthly Mag. May 161/1 This bold rebel was..the immediate successor of another doughty chief, usually known by the appropriate title of the Earl of Hell. 1893 D. MacNicol Sprigs of Heather 148 Here entereth Tibby Flounderfeet, with face as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat, bearing a string of fresh herring. 1958 J. Kesson White Bird Passes v. 68 Come here till I give your face a dicht. It always gets as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat. 1993 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 23 Sept. 14 She roughly rearranged the tousled ginger carpet above a face as filthy as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat. 2006 C. Ferguson Between Bridge & River 22 I won't discuss Jesus with you, Margaret... You are in the employ of the Earl of Hell. Compounds Earl Marcher n. (plural Earls Marcher) now historical the military governor or ruler of a border province; a margrave; cf. marcher lord n. at marcher n.¹ Compounds 2. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > rank > earl, count, or countess > [noun] > margrave margrave1551 Earl Marcher1630 society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > sovereign ruler or monarch > other independent rulers > [noun] > landgrave, margrave, or wildgrave landgravea1513 margrave1551 Earl Marcher1630 wildgrave1798 1630 in tr. G. Botero Relations Famous Kingdomes World (rev. ed.) 402 Saros Patak, where the Palatine or Earle-marcher of that part of Hungaria..usually keeps his residence. a1871 T. Greenwood Cathedra Petri (1872) VI. xiv. v. 205 The deadly enmity of the earl marcher Roger Mortimer had driven Gilbert de Clare from the court. 2007 H. James in J. W. Evans & J. M. Wooding St. David of Wales iii. 61 The Norman Earls Marcher and their knights reshaped the landscape. † earl-right n. Obsolete the right or privilege of an earl.Only in Old English in a law code attributed to Wulfstan, and perhaps coined by him.In quot. 1875 with direct reference to use of the word in quot. lOE. ΚΠ lOE Laws: Geþyncðo (Rochester) v. 458 Gif þegen geþeah, þæt he wearð to eorle, þonne wæs he syððan eorlrihtes weorðe [L. (Quadripartitus) dignus rectitudine comitis et honore]. 1875 W. Stubbs Constit. Hist. (ed. 2) I. v. 80 The..man who has ‘thriven to eorl-right’, or who has his forty hides.] This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online March 2022). † earlv.¹ Forms: Middle English erle. Origin: Perhaps formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: earl n. Etymology: Perhaps < earl n. Obsolete. transitive. Perhaps: to be the lord of.Apparently an isolated use. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > rule or govern [verb (transitive)] steera900 hold971 wieldOE warda1000 redeOE wisc1000 i-weldeOE rightlecheOE rightOE raima1325 governc1325 guyc1330 rulea1387 justicec1390 rekea1400 reigna1413 lorda1450 earlc1450 seignoryc1475 over-govern1485 overrulec1488 emperyc1503 gubern?a1505 signorize1594 sway1613 gubernate1623 overlead1720 belord1858 prime minister1906 c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) l. 4646 Alexander, þat aire þat erles all þe werd. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online December 2021). earlv.² Brit. /əːl/, U.S. /ˈər(ə)l/, Scottish English /ˈɛrl/ Forms: pre-1700 1900s– erl, 1700s errl, 1800s earl, 1800s e'rl. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: arles n. Etymology: < arles n. (compare forms at that entry). Compare later arle v. Scottish. Now rare. transitive. To secure (a bargain, contract, etc.) with payment of a sum of money as an initial instalment; (in later use) esp. to engage (a person) in employment by this means. Also: to pledge. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > working > labour supply > [verb (transitive)] > hire or employ > employ by part payment in advance earlc1480 prest1513 c1480 (a1400) St. Agnes l. 26 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) II. 347 In takine of weding He erlis þaim with his ryng. 1496 in T. Dickson Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1877) I. 276 To by arras bedis to the King, and erl tymmyr and bedding that ȝeid to Striuelin. 1535 in Rec. Parl. Scotl. to 1707 (2007) 1535/35 Under the pane of..escheting of all sik gudis cost or erlit be thame. 1708 in W. Mure Select. Family Papers Caldwell (1854) I. 211 She was recommended here by a physician, a very honest man,..and I errled her. a1810 R. Tannahill Poems & Songs (1815) 163 The heav'nly vow I got, That e'rled her my own. 1881 A. Wardrop Johnnie Mathison's Courtship 80 Ne'er lend your aid to what has hurled, Sae mony tae anither world, Wha ance unconsciously were earled In some drink den. 1928 L. McInnes in Sc. National Dict. (1931) I. 73/2 [Argyll] Ah wuz erld tae her. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.eOEv.¹c1450v.²c1480
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earln.

Phrases

Compounds

† earlv.1

earlv.2

† earlv.¹

earlv.²