Source etymology 1
Original entry ↗Of the jet-black and often glossy colour of the plumage of a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1).
Any of several, generally large, species of birds in the genus Corvus with lustrous black plumage; especially the common raven (Corvus corax). · A jet-black, often glossy, colour, like that of the plumage of a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1). · Usually preceded by a descriptive word: a bird from a genus other than Corvus that resembles the raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1), especially in having black plumage; also, an imaginary black bird. · A flag bearing a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1), formerly used by some Viking leaders
From Middle English raven, reven (“raven (Corvus corax); carrion crow (Corvus corone); rook (Corvus frugilegus) (?); the constellation Corvus; gall nuts of the Aleppo oak (Quercus infectoria) used to make black ink”), from Old English hræfn (“raven”), from Proto-West Germanic *hrabn (“raven”), from Proto-Germanic *hrabnaz (“raven”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *ḱrep- (“to crackle; to rattle”) or *ḱer- (“to croak, crow”), probably ultimately onomatopoeic, referring to the bird’s call.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
This page abbreviates 3 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.
Inspect preserved source fields
Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.
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"Of the jet-black and often glossy colour of the plumage of a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1)."
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"Any of several, generally large, species of birds in the genus Corvus with lustrous black plumage; especially the common raven (Corvus corax).",
"A jet-black, often glossy, colour, like that of the plumage of a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1).",
"Usually preceded by a descriptive word: a bird from a genus other than Corvus that resembles the raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1), especially in having black plumage; also, an imaginary black bird.",
"A flag bearing a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1), formerly used by some Viking leaders"
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