Manlynesse

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality or state of possessing traits traditionally associated with men, such as strength, courage and assertiveness
2. The character of being masculine or having the qualities regarded as typical of a man, including robustness and boldness
3. Masculine character or manner, meaning the display of qualities such as vigor, bravery and forcefulness expected of men

Etymology: "Manlynesse" is a Middle English noun, the spelling of "manliness" as it was written in the 14th and 15th centuries. It is formed from "manly" (from Old English "mannlic," meaning "of a man, human, manly," built from "man" plus the suffix "-lic," "-like") and the abstract noun ending "-ness," which is the same Old English suffix that turns adjectives into nouns of quality, as in "goodness" or "kindness." The result is a plain, transparent compound of an existing word and a productive suffix, with no borrowing from another language. Its meaning in early use was broader than the modern "strength" sense given here. The root "man" in Old English could mean any human being as well as an adult male, so "manly" and its nouns could describe the qualities expected of a person of either sex, such as courage, dignity, or steadfastness, and the sense narrowed toward male qualities only gradually. The word appears in Middle English texts as a moral virtue more often than as a measure of physical power.