holy English · revision 2820

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 725|origins=gem-pro *hailagaz}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈhəʊ.li/, US /ˈhoʊ.li/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|holi]], hali,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) [[inh|ang|hālig|t=holy, sacred, consecrated]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[gem-pro|*hailagaz|alt=*hailaga-]],^(Etymonline) from [[m|gem-pro|*hailaz|t=whole]], the source of [[whole]],^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) from [[ine-pro|*kailo-|t=whole, uninjured]], according to Watkins.^(Etymonline) It is cognate with Old Frisian hēlich, Old Saxon hēlag, Dutch and German heilig, Old Norse heilagr and Gothic hailags.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) The primary, pre-Christian sense is uncertain:^(Etymonline) probably “that must be preserved whole, inviolate”,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) or “of good augury”.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old English, about 725 in Barnhart,^(Barnhart 1988) with the OED's first example of a deity held in religious awe from about 825.^(OED 1989) After the conversion it was used for Latin sanctus.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Old English hālig meant “divine, sacred, to be revered”, “consecrated” and “godly, perfect in religious life”.^(Etymonline) Of persons devoted to God it is from about 950, and of things set apart for religious use from about 1000.^(OED 1989) From its early forms come [[hallow]], both the noun “a saint” and the verb, and [[halibut]] and [[Halloween]].^(Etymonline) ''Holy water'' and ''Holy Ghost'' (Old English hālig gāst, translating sanctus spiritus) were already Old English,^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) and ''Holy Spirit'' is from the 13th century.^(Hoad 1986) ''Holy of holies'', the inner sanctuary of the Temple in Jerusalem, is late Middle English, and ''holier than thou'', from Isaiah, is from the early 20th century.^(Cresswell 2021) The general sense of high excellence is from 1599.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – Old English hālig.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 825 – of a deity.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 950 – of persons devoted to God.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1000 – set apart for religious use.^(OED 1989)

+ * 13th century – ''Holy Spirit''.^(Hoad 1986)

+ * 1599 – of high excellence.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Belonging to or coming from God or a [[divine]] power; [[sacred]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Worthy of worship or [[veneration]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Living a deeply religious and moral life; [[saintly]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Set apart for a religious purpose: ''holy water''.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # ''(informal)'' Used as an intensive: ''a holy terror''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[holily]]

+ * [[holiness]]

+ * [[holier-than-thou]]

+ * [[Holyhead]]

+ * [[holystone]]

+ * [[Holy Roller]]

+ * [[Holy Bread]]

+ * [[Holy Father]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[halibut]]

+ * [[halidom]]

+ * [[hallow]]

+ * [[hallowed]]

+ * [[holiday]]

+ * [[whole]]

+ * [[Halloween]]

+ * [[health]]

+ * [[heal]]

+ * [[hale]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The ''Century Dictionary'' (1895), quoted by Etymonline, distinguished ''holy'', whose sanctity comes directly from God, from ''sacred'', which may take its sanction from man;^(Etymonline) the opposite of holy is sinful, that of sacred is secular.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}