ash English · revision 7166

+ English has two words spelled ash, which Word Origins notes started out as two completely different words: the powdery remains of fire, from Old English æsce, and the tree, from Old English æsc.^(Cresswell 2021)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈæʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ {{homograph|1|remains of burning}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=before 800|origins=gem-pro *askǭ}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English asshe, [[inh|ang|æsċe|t=ash]], asce,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) from [[gem-pro|*askǭ]],^(Etymonline) source also of Old Norse [[m|non|aska]], German [[m|de|Asche]] and Gothic azgo, ashes,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from PIE [[ine-pro|*h₂eHs-|alt=*as-|t=to burn, glow]],^(Etymonline) perhaps akin to Latin ārēre, to be dry.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The powdery remains of burning: before 800 in Barnhart.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Ashes as the mortal remains of a person, from the ancient custom of cremation, is from the late 13th century.^(Etymonline) As a symbol of grief or repentance it gave [[Ash Wednesday]] (about 1300), from the custom of sprinkling ashes on penitents' heads on the first day of Lent.^(Etymonline) Fine lava thrown out by a volcano is from the 1660s.^(Etymonline) In cricket, ''the Ashes'' is the trophy of the Test series between England and Australia.^(Collins 2023)^(COED 2004)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 800 – ash.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 13th century – a person's remains.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1300 – Ash Wednesday.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1660s – volcanic ash.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The powdery residue left after something has burned.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(ashes)'' The remains of a human body after [[cremation]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Fine particles of lava from a volcano.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[ashen]]

+ * [[ashtray]]

+ * [[ashy]]

+ * [[Ash Wednesday]]

+

+ {{homograph|2|tree}}

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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 700|origins=gem-pro *askiz}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English asshe, [[inh|ang|æsċ|t=ash tree; spear]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) from [[gem-pro|*askiz]],^(Hoad 1986)^(Etymonline) source also of Old Norse [[m|non|askr]], Old Saxon ask and German [[m|de|Esche]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) related to Latin [[m|la|ornus|t=wild mountain ash]], Russian jasen' and Lithuanian uosis.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The forest tree, Fraxinus: about 700 in the OED.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The tough, elastic wood was preferred for spear-shafts, so Old English æsc sometimes meant a spear, especially in poetry, as in æsc-plega, war, literally spear-play.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988) Æsc was also the name of the runic letter that begins the word.^(Etymonline) The wood itself is from about 1380.^(OED 1989) Various herbs with pinnate leaves were locally called ash from 1552.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 700 – the tree.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 1000 – a spear (obsolete).^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1380 – ash wood.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A tree of the genus ''Fraxinus'', of the olive family, with compound leaves and winged fruits.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The tough, light-coloured wood of this tree.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[mountain ash]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[ardent]]

+ * [[arid]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}