Sheiling

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A temporary shelter typically used by shepherds in mountainous regions during the summer months
2. A rustic dwelling or hut found in the uplands, often utilized for livestock grazing and agricultural purposes
3. A simple structure for sheltering people or animals, frequently associated with pastoral land use and seasonal habitation

Etymology: Across the Scottish Highlands and Islands, this word named a hut in the hills that was never meant for year-round living. It comes from Old Norse "sel", a summer dwelling used when herds were driven up to high pasture. The same root survives in Norwegian "seter", a mountain farm used in summer, a trace of how much Norse settlement shaped the upland vocabulary of northern Britain. The English form developed through Scots, where forms like "shiel" were used, with the "-ing" ending added to form the spelling in use today. Families and herders would leave the glens for weeks at a time each summer, and the term came to describe both the huts and the grazing land around them.

Synonyms: hut, shelter