Athelstone

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Athelstan was the first king to rule over a unified England, reigning from 924 until his death in 939
2. A tenth-century Anglo-Saxon monarch who united England under one crown and won the battle of Brunanburh
3. The Wessex king who conquered the Northumbrian Vikings and became the first ruler of a consolidated England

Etymology: Athelstan (the modern form of the name) was the first king of a unified England, ruling from 924 to 939. The name is Old English "Æþelstān", from "æþel", meaning "noble", and "stān", meaning "stone". It was a royal name built from the same kind of elements that filled the Anglo-Saxon royal family tree, and it has lasted in English as a personal name for more than a thousand years. Athelstan's reign is remembered largely for the Battle of Brunanburh, a victory over an alliance of Scots, Vikings and Britons that later Old English poetry celebrated in its own verse. He also drew Welsh, Scottish and Northumbrian rulers into his orbit, which is why historians treat him as a major figure in the making of England.