kengr

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *kengaz, from Proto-Germanic *keng- (“to turn”), of unknown origin. Perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *gengʰ- (“to turn, twist, braid, weave”). Cognate with Dutch kink ("curl, kink"; > English kink), Middle Low German kinke (“spiral snail shell, twist in a rope”).

Noun

kengr m

1. a horseshoe-formed crook
2. bend, bight

Related terms

• hang
• krókr
• kjenge (Nynorsk)
• kjenge (Bokmål)

Descendants

• Icelandic: kengur
• Norwegian Bokmål: kjeng
• Norwegian Nynorsk: kjeng

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “kengr”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 238; also available at the Internet Archive