bula
To say bull in Old English, meaning an adult male of cattle, use bula.
bula names the uncastrated male animal of cattle, the same sense as the modern English word.
Meaning: uncastrated adult male bovine (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
bula is a masculine noun of the weak type, the group of Old English nouns that end in a in the basic form.
When do people say it?
The modern English word bull goes back to bula through Middle English.
Did you know?
- The word bula shares a prehistoric ancestor with the modern English word 'bubble', as both stem from a root meaning 'to blow' or 'swell'.
- An Old English farmer would not use 'bula' for an animal used to pull a heavy plow. For a working beast, they would instead use the term 'ox', distinguishing the brute strength of a 'bula' from the utility of a castrated worker.
- The term bula belongs to a specific class of nouns known as 'weak' nouns, which is a grammatical category that has since vanished from English.
Example conversation
A couple discusses their livestock in a farmyard.
- OsricHwær is se bula?Where is the bull?
- MildrythSe bula is in þam geard.The bull is in the yard.
- OsricIs he wild?Is he wild?
- MildrythNe, he is mild.No, he is mild.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bula, CC BY-SA 4.0.
