yellowhammern.

Etymology: Probably the reflex of an unattested Old English compound *geoluamer < geolu yellow adj. (with reference to the colour of the bird's feathers) + amer (also as omer , emer ), a bird name of uncertain meaning, probably denoting the bunting or perhaps specifically the yellowhammer, cognate with Old Saxon amar (Middle Low German -amer in goltamer ; compare German regional (Low German) -emerken , diminutive, in geelemerken ), Old High German amaro (late, in glossaries; Middle High German amer , German Ammer ; frequently as second element in the compound Goldammer (early Middle High German goltamer )), probably < the same Germanic base as Old High German amar emmer n., a kind of wheat (perhaps originally short for a compound with a word for ‘bird’ as the second element; compare also German derivatives of Old High German amaro cited below), the bird being so named with reference to its preference for cereal grain as food (compare German Kornvogel (15th cent.; now regional)). Compare later hammer n.², ammer n.German suffixed forms of the second element. The German cognate of Old English amer frequently appears in suffixed form; compare Old High German amaring (Middle High German amerinc (late), German Ämmering , now regional), Old High German amarzo , amirzo (late, in glossaries; Middle High German emerza , German Emmeritze ; compare the genus name Emberiza ), Middle High German amerlinc (German Emmerling ). Some forms of this German group of cognates show i-mutation of the vowel of the first syllable, perhaps also seen in early Old English emer . Compare also post-classical Latin amarellus (12th cent. in continental (German) sources, also undated in glossaries; 15th cent. in a British source). Form history With the α. forms compare Old English -hamer in clodhamer (early Middle English clothomer ), a bird name of uncertain meaning, perhaps denoting the fieldfare (however, see note below), and early Middle High German -hamere (in golthamere ; compare also early modern German golthamer (15th cent.)). The origin of initial h- in the second element of the α. forms (and their German parallels) is uncertain. Initial h- is also attested in forms of derivatives of Old High German amaro (compare early modern German hemmerling (16th cent.)). Compare also forms of place names which may perhaps show Old English amer , as e.g. hambres buruh , Wiltshire (13th cent. in a copy of a 10th-cent. charter; 11th cent. as Ambresbyrig ; now Amesbury), Hamreden , Essex (a1272; 1086 as Amerdene , Amberdanam ; now Amberden), Hambresdune , Oxfordshire (c1444 in a copy of a charter of c1152; 1086 as Ambresdone ; now Ambrosden), although these have alternatively been taken as showing a personal name as first element; see further D. Parsons & T. Styles in Jrnl. Eng. Place-name Soc. 28 (1995–6 ) 6–31. The forms in h- may be purely phonological (sporadic development of h- before an initial vowel); however, alteration after Old English hama hame n.¹ (or in Old High German after its cognate hamo ) has also been suggested (compare the early attestation of the word in compounds denoting plumage, as featherham n. and its Old Saxon cognate fetharhamo ). If so, yellow ham n., yellow ambird n. could show a direct reflex of hame n.¹ rather than a shortened form or alteration of yellowhammer n. Alternatively, early alteration after hammer n.¹ and its cognate has also been suggested. At any rate, the association with hammer n.¹ seems likely to underlie the standard spelling adopted in English. Forms such as yelambre at β. forms show an epenthetic consonant (similarly Irish English yellowander at β. forms). Context and meaning of the Old English words. In Old English amer always translates Latin scorellus , a bird name of uncertain meaning found only in glossaries, apparently originally a corrupt form of post-classical Latin sciuriolus , scurellus (see squirrel n. and compare discussion at fieldfare n. 1), but usually assumed to denote a bunting. Old English clodhamer and early Middle English clothomer also translate scorellus (compare quot. OE at fieldfare n. 1). It has been suggested that clodhamer , rather than being a synonym of Old English feldefare fieldfare n. 1 (compare clot n., later clod n., and perhaps also later clot-bird n.), instead shows a transmission error for an otherwise unattested Old English *goldamer (compare later goldhammer n.¹). The Old English word may denote a species of bunting distinct from the yellowhammer, e.g. the corn bunting. Other names of the bird. The bird has many regional designations in English in which yellow adj. also appears as first element, as yowlring n. (compare also yorling n., yoldring n., and yowley n.) and also yellow bunting n. at yellow adj. and n. Compounds 2b(b), yellow yite (see yite n.). Compare also the reference to the colour implied by goldhammer n.¹ and its early German parallels cited above, and similarly goldspink n. 2, goldfinch n. 1c. In some areas of the West Germanic continuum the word has been superseded by different formations, compare especially early modern Dutch gors (1577; Dutch gors ), Middle Low German gorse (in gēlgorse ), early modern German gürse , gorse (a1577); of uncertain origin. Middle Low German gēlgorse (and its regional German reflexes) also shows a form of the base of yellow adj. as first element. In Scandinavian no cognate of Old English amer is attested.