Bosworth Toller's

Anglo-Saxon

Dictionary online

æ
þ

belene

  • noun [ feminine ]
Dictionary links
Grammar
belene, beolone, belone, an; f.
Henbell, henbane; hyoscyamus niger
Show examples

  • Belenan meng wið rysele

    mix henbane with lard

    • L. M. 1, 31
      • ;
    • Lchdm. ii. 72, 1.

  • Dó belenan seáw

    apply the juice of henbane

    • 3, 3
      • ;
    • Lchdm. ii. 310, 7.

  • Genim beolonan sǽd

    take the seed of henbane

    • 1, 2
      • ;
    • Lchdm. ii. 38, 1.
Etymology
[Henbane is so called from the baneful effects of its seed upon poultry, of which Matthioli says that 'birds, especially gallinaceous birds, that have eaten the seeds perish soon after, as do fishes also.'The
A. Sax. beleneand beolone
Ger. bilse
,
O. Ger. belisa
,
Pol. bielún
,
Hung. belénd
,
Rus. belená,
are words derived (according to Zeuss, p. 34) from an ancient Celtic god Belenus, corresponding to the Apollo of the Latins : 'Dem Belenus war das Bilsenkraut heilig, das von ihm Belisa and Apollinaris hiess,'[Prior 109.]
Similar entries
v. beolone, henne-belle.
Linked entries
v.  belune beolone.
Entry information
Citation

Bosworth, Joseph. “belene.” In An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online, edited by Thomas Northcote Toller, Christ Sean, and Ondřej Tichy. Prague: Faculty of Arts, Charles University, 2014. https://bosworthtoller.com/3587.

Checked: 1
Full form

Word-wheel

  • belene, n.

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