Sceaphierde

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An Old English term for a herder who looks after a flock of sheep and guides them to pasture
2. A man or woman whose work is watching over sheep, leading them to grazing land and protecting them
3. The keeper of a flock of sheep, responsible for their feeding, safety and welfare in the fields

Etymology: Shepherd shows its two halves plainly. Its Old English form, "sceaphierde," joins "sceap," meaning sheep, with "hierde," a keeper or guardian. The second element survives in swineherd and goatherd, which name the same kind of work for other animals. The surprise lies in "hierde" itself. In Old English it meant the person in charge of animals, not a group of them. The modern sense of "herd" as a flock or drove grew out of that idea of the keeper, so the group is named after the person who tended it.