scealc

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *skalk, from Proto-Germanic *skalkaz. Cognate with Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌻𐌺𐍃 (skalks, “slave, servant”) and Old High German skalk (“serf”).

Noun

sċealc m

1. servant
2. man, soldier, sailor

Declension

Declension of scealc (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	sċealc	sċealcas
accusative	sċealc	sċealcas
genitive	sċealces	sċealca
dative	sċealce	sċealcum

Derived terms

• ambehtsċealc m (“official servant”)
• bēorsċealc m (“beer-servant, butler”)
• freoþosċealc m (“minister of peace”)

Descendants

• Middle English: schalk, scalk, schalke, schalkke, shalk
  • English: shalk
  • Middle Scots: schalk, schak, schaik

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “sċealc”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎^[1], 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.