Beorh

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An Old English word for a natural hill or elevated ground ; a man-made mound raised over a grave or burial chamber
2. A rising elevation of land in Old English usage ; a heaped earthen mound built to cover a tomb or the dead
3. Old English for a hill or high ground ; a burial mound or barrow piled over the remains of the dead

Etymology: Beorh is an Old English word meaning "hill" or "mound," and it survives in modern English mainly through place names rather than everyday vocabulary. Its most famous descendant is "barrow," the name for an ancient burial mound, which comes from the same root: Old English "beorg," an alternate form of "beorh," gave Middle English "berwe" and later "barrow." The two forms show the sound changes that Old English underwent, with the "gh" spelling in "beorh" representing a consonant that later faded from speech. Many English place names preserve the word in its older shape. Names ending in "-bury" or "-bery," such as Glastonbury or Wanborough, often contain it, though the ending can also come from "burh," meaning a fortified settlement, so scholars must check each name individually. The "-bury" in Glastonbury, for example, comes from "burh," not from "beorh." Where "beorh" does appear, it usually refers to a rounded hill or a burial mound on the landscape.