Fairhair

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. Having light-coloured hair, such as blond, golden or pale yellow hair
2. Describing a person or animal whose hair is pale, blond or light in tone
3. Possessing hair of a light, flaxen or golden shade rather than dark brown or black

Etymology: Harald Fairhair, the late ninth-century Norwegian king said to have unified Norway, gave the word its best-known association, though it is a plain compound with no special coinage behind it. "Fair" comes from Old English "fæger," meaning beautiful or pleasing, and "hair" from Old English "hær," so the sense is simply "beautiful hair," which in Anglo-Saxon and Norse usage tended to mean light or golden hair. The compound is attested in Old English and Old Norse-influenced texts, with the Norse "fagrhárr" offering a parallel that reinforced the older usage in northern England. Fair itself has an unexpected twist: it once described appearance broadly, and only later narrowed toward complexion and then toward a sense of justice. Its original Old English meaning covered beauty of any kind, so "fairhair" began as a description of an admired feature rather than a statement about colour, the colour being what admiration happened to attach to in those cultures.