English word origin

Etymology of lown

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 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 ↗

noun

Calm, tranquillity. · A shelter; a calm or peaceful place.

adj

Peaceful, calm.

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

From Middle English lune, borrowed from Old Norse logn (“windstillness”), from Proto-Norse *lugna, meaning "place where the water is smooth", ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“bright”), referring to shining water. Germanic cognates include Icelandic lón, Danish lyn (“lightning”), Swedish lugn (“calm water”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentionluneenm
Derivation mentionlognnon
Derivation mention*lugnagmq-pro
Derivation mention*lewk-ine-pro
Cognate mentionlónis
Cognate mentionlynda
Cognate mentionlugnsv

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "lune"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English lune"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "logn",
        "4": "",
        "5": "windstillness"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse logn (“windstillness”)"
    },
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      "args": {
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        "2": "gmq-pro",
        "3": "*lugna",
        "tr": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Norse *lugna"
    },
    {
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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*lewk-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "bright"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“bright”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "lón"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic lón"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "lyn",
        "3": "",
        "4": "lightning"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish lyn (“lightning”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sv",
        "2": "lugn",
        "3": "",
        "4": "calm water"
      },
      "expansion": "Swedish lugn (“calm water”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "lune",
      "lune#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "logn",
      "logn#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "*lugna",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Norse/lugna"
    ],
    [
      "*lewk-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/lewk-"
    ],
    [
      "lón",
      "lón#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "lyn",
      "lyn#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "lugn",
      "lugn#Swedish"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Calm, tranquillity.",
        "A shelter; a calm or peaceful place."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland"
      ],
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      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Peaceful, calm."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

A low fellow.

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

See loon.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "loon",
      "loon#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A low fellow."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
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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 lown →

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-bG93bg