*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of Herne

Unknown. Suggested by R. Lowe Thompson to derive from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“horn”), which would mean it is related to English horn. Others have suggested that it comes from Old English Herian (literally “warrior-le

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
name

Herne the Hunter, an English mythological figure; an antlered ghost associated with Windsor Forest and Great Park in the English county of Berkshire.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Unknown. Suggested by R. Lowe Thompson to derive from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“horn”), which would mean it is related to English horn. Others have suggested that it comes from Old English Herian (literally “warrior-leader”), which is a name for Woden. Another theory is that it derives from the surname Horne.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "unk",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Unknown"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*ḱer-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "horn"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“horn”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "horn"
      },
      "expansion": "English horn"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "Herian",
        "lit": "warrior-leader"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English Herian (literally “warrior-leader”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*ḱer-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ḱer-"
    ],
    [
      "horn",
      "horn#English"
    ],
    [
      "Herian",
      "Herian#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "Woden",
      "Woden"
    ],
    [
      "Horne",
      "Horne#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
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      "glosses": [
        "Herne the Hunter, an English mythological figure; an antlered ghost associated with Windsor Forest and Great Park in the English county of Berkshire."
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
name

A village in Herne and Broomfield parish, City of Canterbury district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1865).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Old English hyrne (“corner”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Derivation mentionhyrneang
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "hyrne",
        "4": "",
        "5": "corner"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English hyrne (“corner”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "hyrne",
      "hyrne#Old_English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A village in Herne and Broomfield parish, City of Canterbury district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1865)."
      ],
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
name

A city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from German Herne.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "de:Herne",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"German\", \"term\" : \"Herne\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"de\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"Herne\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"Herne\">\nBorrowed from German Herne."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
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        "3": "de:Herne",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
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    }
  ],
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    [
      "Herne",
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    ]
  ],
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      "pos": "name",
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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
name

A surname.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Variant of Hearn.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [],
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    [
      "Hearn",
      "Hearn#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
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      "pos": "name",
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        "A surname."
      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Herne →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-SGVybmU