ealdorman

English

Alternative forms

• ealderman, eolderman

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Old English ealdormann. See alderman (from Old English aldormann).

Noun

ealdorman (plural ealdormen)

1. (historical) The chief magistrate of a shire in Anglo-Saxon England.

Derived terms

• ealdormanry

Old English

Alternative forms

• æaldorman, æaldormæn, æaldermen — Anglian
• ealdormann, aldermon, aldermonn

Etymology

From ealdor (“elder”) +‎ man (“person”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈæ͜ɑl.dorˌmɑn/, [ˈæ͜ɑɫ.dorˌmɑn]

Noun

ealdorman m

1. an elderman; senator, chief, duke, a nobleman of the highest rank and holding an office inferior only to that of the king
2. an alderman
3. governor
   • c. 992, Ælfric, "On the Nativity of our Lord"

     Þeos towritennys wearð aræred fram ðam ealdormen Cyrino, of Sirian lande, þæt ælc man oferhēafod sceolde cennan his gebyrde, and his áre on ðære byrig þe hé to gehyrde.

     This enrolment was set forth from Cyrenius, the governor of Syria—that every man in general should declare his birth and his possession in the city to which he belonged.