Leac

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic English name for the leek, a long-leaved vegetable of the onion family with a mild flavour
2. The old word for the leek, a hardy allium plant grown for its edible white stem and green leaves
3. Old English term for the leek, a member of the onion genus valued as a savoury vegetable in cooking

Etymology: Old English speakers called the vegetable "lēac," the ancestor of modern "leek." The same root appears in "gārlēac," literally "spear-leek," which became "garlic." The first element, "gār," meant "spear," probably because of the plant's pointed, spear-like leaves, so the garlic bulb was named for its leaf shape rather than its bulb. The root is ancient in Germanic languages. Old Norse had "laukr," Dutch has "look," and German has "Lauch," all meaning the same plant. The Old English form survived largely unchanged into Middle English, and the spelling shifted to "leek" in the later medieval period. Welsh tradition holds that leeks became the national emblem after Welsh soldiers wore them in their caps to tell themselves apart from Saxon enemies in battle. This story is legendary, not documented, and it is popularly linked to Saint David.