hákarl

noun

An Icelandic food, cured fermented shark with a strong ammonia smell.

OriginIcelandic hákar ← Old Norse hákarl ← Proto-Norse ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ (karilaʀ) →
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Meanings

nounhákarl (uncountable)
  1. uncountableAn Icelandic food, cured fermented shark with a strong ammonia smell.

Origin

  1. Old Norsehár
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ǵerh₂-
  3. Proto-Germanic*karaz
  4. Proto-Germanic*karilaz
  5. Proto-Norseᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ (karilaʀ)
  6. Old Norsekarl
  7. Old Norsehákarl
  8. Icelandichákar
  9. Englishhákarl

Borrowed from Icelandic hákarl (“shark”).

More words from Icelandic

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Cite this entry
APA

hákarl. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/h%C3%A1karl

MLA

“hákarl.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/h%C3%A1karl. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hákarl,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/h%C3%A1karl.

Source: hákarl on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.