Etymologically
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heather

Etymology and origin of the English word heather

History Permalink
Confidence
Unknown
First attested
1335

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈhiːðəɹ/; /ˈhɛðə/ (UK); /ˈhɛðɚ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is an alteration of earlier hathir (northern dialect),[2][3][4] perhaps from an unrecorded Old English *hæddre;[2][3][4] the New Oxford cites Old English hadre and hedre in place names.[5] Its origin is unknown.[2][4][5] It was probably altered under the influence of heath, but a real connection with that word is unlikely, according to Liberman and the OED.[3][6] Etymonline suggests it may be originally Celtic.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The native species of Calluna and Erica, first a Scots name: 1335 (hathir) in the OED and Barnhart.[7][2]

Semantic evolution

The word was chiefly Scots until the 16th century;[5] the form hadder or hather prevailed in English from the 16th to the 18th century,[4] and heather is first recorded in 1725, in heather-bell.[2][4][5] To set the heather on fire, to make a disturbance, is from 1818.[7] As a girl's name Heather was little used in the United States before 1935.[3]

Timeline

  • 1335 – hathir.[7][2]
  • 16th century – hadder, hather in English.[4]
  • 1725 – heather-bell.[2]
  • 1818 – set the heather on fire.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A low-growing evergreen shrub, Calluna vulgaris, with small bell-shaped pinkish-purple flowers, growing on open moorland; ling.
  2. Any of various similar plants; heath.
  3. A purplish-red colour.

Word family

  • heathered
  • heathery
  • heath
  • ling
  • erica

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Liberman, Anatoly (2008), An Analytic Dictionary of English Etymology: An Introduction, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press
  7. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Heather.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/heather. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·