hræfn (Old English)

Where does "hræfn" come from?

The Old English noun 'hræfn' meaning 'raven' descends from the Proto-West Germanic 'hrabn'[1][3], which itself originates from the Proto-Germanic 'hrabnaz'[1][3]. The word is related to cognates such as Old Norse 'hrafn', Old High German 'raban', and Latin 'corvus'[1]. While some older theories linked the term to the Proto-Indo-European root '*ḱer-'[2], scholars now believe the word stems from a pre-Germanic root '*krobʰ-no-s'[2]. This root is likely onomatopoeic in nature, mirroring the sound-symbolic logic found in many other names for corvid birds across various languages[2].

Open questions

The derivation from the Proto-Indo-European root '*ḱorh₂-' is now considered less likely than the onomatopoeic origin. [1] [2]
The older theory connecting the term to a Proto-Indo-European root '*ḱer-' is not currently favored. [2]

Full etymology tree

hræfn (Old English), 'raven'
- inherited *hrabn (Proto-West Germanic), 'raven'
  - inherited *hrabnaz (Proto-Germanic), 'raven'
    - derived *krobʰ-no-s (Pre-Germanic)
      - derived *krobʰ- (Pre-Germanic)

Ancestors

*hrabn (Proto-West Germanic)
*hrabnaz (Proto-Germanic)

Cognates and doublets

corvus (Latin)
ravan (Old Dutch)
raban (Old High German)
hrafn (Old Norse)
hraƀan (Old Saxon)

Descendants and derived words

reven (Middle English)
reven (Middle English)
hræfnsweart (Old English)

Sources

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris