shieling

Etymology

From Scots shiel (“hut”) (from Old Norse skjól (“shelter, cover”)) + -ing.. Akin to Danish skjul (“cover”).

noun

  1. An area of summer pasture used for cattle, sheep etc.
    The cattle at Mosfell were kept in a shieling, and Thordis stayed there while the Thing took place. 1997, ‘Egil's Saga’, translated by Bernard Scudder, The Sagas of Icelanders, Penguin, published 2001, page 182
  2. A shepherd's hut or shack.
    And what are twenty beds, when all the drovers, And all the shieling herdsmen from Bengorach, Must have a lair provided for the night. 1836, Joanna Baillie, The Phantom, act 1
    Cabins and shielings had been torn down and burned. 2002, Joseph O'Conner, Star of the Sea, Vintage, published 2003, page 39

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