Byrth

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The process or act of being born or giving birth; the origin or beginning of life; a term historically used to denote birth or ancestry
2. The event or condition of entering life through delivery from the mother; the point at which life or existence commences; an archaic form referring to one's family origin or lineage
3. The action of bearing offspring or coming into the world; the commencement of an individual's life span; an old-fashioned word related to family heritage and natal origins

Etymology: Birth is literally "a bearing." Its root is the same as the verb "bear," and the "-th" ending is the same noun-forming suffix found in "death" and "truth." The noun came into English from Old Norse "burðr," a relative of Old English "byrðen" ("burden," that which is carried), and it displaced the older native nouns for the event. Medieval English spelled the word in many ways, including "byrth," with "y" and "th" in various combinations. The Old Norse source reflects the Viking-age contact between Scandinavian settlers and English speakers, which left many everyday words in the language. Writers using the spelling "byrth" were recording a form of the same noun that gradually settled into the modern spelling.

Synonyms: birth, nativity

Antonyms: death