stour

stour · adjective, noun, adverb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*stā-r-
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*stōraz
3. Proto-West Germanic · derived from*stōr
4. Old English · inherited fromstōr“tall, great, mighty, strong”
5. Middle English · inherited fromstore
6. English todaystour

From Middle English store, stoor, stour (“tall, powerful”), from Old English stōr (“tall, great, mighty, strong”), from Proto-West Germanic *stōr, from Proto-Germanic *stōraz, *stōrijaz (“great, big, strong”), from Proto-Indo-European *stā-r-, *stō-r- (“steadfast, firm; standing tall; big, bulky”). Cognates Akin to Scots stour (“tall, large, great, stout”), Saterland Frisian stor (“great, many”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian stor (“large, great”), Icelandic stórr (“large, tall”), Polish stary (“old, ancient”), Albanian stër- (“big, huge”). Compare also stoor, steer, stately.

stour · noun²

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*stā-“to stand, place”
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*stauraz“pole, support”
3. Old Norse · derived fromstaurr“a stake, pale”
4. Middle English · derived fromstoure
5. English todaystour

From Middle English stoure, stourre, from Old Norse staurr (“a stake, pale”), from Proto-Germanic *stauraz (“pole, support”), from Proto-Indo-European *stā- (“to stand, place”). Cognate with Icelandic staur (“a stake, pole”), Ancient Greek σταυρός (staurós, “a stake, cross”).

stour · noun, verb³

1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*sturmaz“storm”
2. Frankish · derived from*sturm“storm, commotion, battle”
3. Vulgar Latin · derived from*estorma
4. Old French · derived fromestour
5. Anglo-Norman · derived fromestur“conflict, struggle”
6. Middle English · inherited fromstour
7. English todaystour

From Middle English stour, stor (“conflict”) from Anglo-Norman estur (“conflict, struggle”), from Old French estour, estor, estorme, estourmie, estormie (“battle, assault, conflict, tumult”), from Vulgar Latin *estorma, *storma (“battle, conflict, storm”), from Frankish *sturm (“storm, commotion, battle”), from Proto-Germanic *sturmaz (“storm”). Akin to Old High German sturm (“battle, storm”). More at storm.

Stour · proper noun⁴

Most of the rivers' names are from the root of stour (“powerful, tall, large”), though some may have been borrowed through and influenced by Celtic (compare Welsh dŵr (“water”).

Words from the same roots