Where does “skvallerkärring” come from?
skvallerkärring (Swedish) comes from Swedish kärring, from Old Swedish kärling, from Old Norse kerling, from Old Norse Karl, from Proto-Norse ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ, from Proto-Germanic karilaz, from Proto-Germanic karaz, from Proto-Indo-European ǵerh₂- — to grow old, to mature.
skvallerkärring (Swedish): a gossip, a gossip-monger, a tattletale
Definitions
- a gossip, a gossip-monger, a tattletale
Ancestry of “skvallerkärring”, step by step
skvallerkärring traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Swedish kärring
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swedish | kärring | (disagreeable) old woman |
| 2 | Old Swedish | kärling | — |
| 3 | Old Norse | kerling | woman, wife; old woman |
| 4 | Old Norse | Karl | man |
| 5 | Proto-Norse | ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | karilaz | free man, franklin; little man, young man |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | karaz | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵerh₂- | to grow old, to mature |