Myne

Part of speech: noun, pronoun

Definitions

1. An underground excavation or pit from which minerals, coal, or other valuable materials are extracted
2. A deep pit or tunnel system dug into the earth to remove ore, gemstones, or other resources
3. An opening worked into the ground to obtain minerals or other materials of economic value

Etymology: "Myne" is simply an obsolete spelling of "mine" in its possessive sense, "belonging to me." Its real interest lies in the fact that it is one word with two unrelated histories, and the spelling "myne" survives mainly as a relic of the older form. The possessive descends from Old English "mīn," which traces back through Proto-Germanic to a Proto-Indo-European root, and it is cognate with words such as German "mein," Dutch "mijn," and Swedish "min." The other "mine," meaning an excavation for ore, has a separate and more surprising ancestry. It came into English from Old French "mine," which in turn came from Late Latin "mina." That Latin word was borrowed from Gaulish, the Celtic language of ancient Gaul, where it meant "ore" or "metal." Welsh "mwyn" and Irish "mianach" preserve the same Celtic root, so the excavation sense of "mine" is a Celtic word that reached English by way of Latin and French.