Etymology

holster

H4O1L1S1T1E1R1

Today it means: A case for carrying a tool, particularly a gun, safely and accessibly. Full definition →

Dutch holster ← Middle Low German holster ← Old Saxon *holster
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

The story

  1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*hulastrą
  2. Old Saxon · derived from*holster
  3. Middle Low German · derived fromholster
  4. Dutch · borrowed fromholster“pistol-case, holster”
  5. English todayholster

From Dutch holster (“pistol-case, holster”), from Middle Low German holster, from Old Saxon *holster, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *hulastrą, *hulistrą (“hull, case, covering”). Cognate with Old English heolstor (“a covering, veil, hiding-place”), Danish hylster (“pistol case, envelope”), Icelandic hulstur (“sheath”), Gothic 𐌷𐌿𐌻𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍂 (hulistr, “covering”). Compare German Halfter (“pistol case”). Related to hull, hele.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.