Nibelung

English

Etymology

From German Nibelung, singular form corresponding to plural Nibelungen; from Old High German nibel (“mist”) + patronymic ending -ung, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *nebulaz + *-ungō.

Noun

Nibelung (plural Nibelungs or Nibelungen)

1. (Germanic mythology) A member of a supernatural underground race that guarded treasures and gold searched for and eventually seized by Siegfried.
   • 1759, Archibald Bower, The History of the Popes: From the Foundation of the See of Rome to the Present Time‎^[1], volume 4, London: Author, Hadrian, Ninety—Fourth Bishop of Rome, page 62:

     […] and at the same Time flattered himself, that the Lombards and People of Acquitaine, whom he had lately conquered, having Kings of their own, would not be so easily tempted to shake off the Yoke, as if their Countries were made Provinces of France. [footnote] Eginhard. in vit. Carol. Chron. Nibelung. in appendice. Annal. Moiffiac.

   • 1814, Robert Jamieson, Walter Scott, Henry William Weber, Illustrations of northern antiquities, from the earlier Tentonie and Scandinavian romances: being an abstract of the Book of heroes, and Nibelungen lay; with translation of metrical tales, from the Old German, Danish, Swedish, and Icelandie languages; with notes and dissertations.‎^[2], Edinburgh: Printed by J. Ballantyne and co., for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, Of the Teutonic Cyclus of Romance, page 25:

     The Song of the Nibelungen, and the Lament.

Related terms

• Nibelungenlied

Translations

member of an underground, treasure-guarding race in Germanic mythology

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 尼伯龙人

• Dutch: Neveling m
• German: Nibelung (de) m
• Marathi: निबेलुंग m (nibeluṅga)
• Portuguese: nibelungo m
• Spanish: nibelungo m

See also

• Rhine gold

References

• Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933.

Anagrams

• bluening

German

Etymology

From Middle High German nebel, from Old High German nibel (“mist”) + patronymic ending -ung, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *nebulaz + *-ungō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈniːbəlʊŋ]
• Hyphenation: Ni‧be‧lung

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

Nibelung m (weak, genitive Nibelungen, plural Nibelungen)

1. (Germanic mythology) Nibelung

Declension

Declension of Nibelung [masculine, weak]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Nibelung	die	Nibelungen
genitive	eines	des	Nibelungen	der	Nibelungen
dative	einem	dem	Nibelungen	den	Nibelungen
accusative	einen	den	Nibelungen	die	Nibelungen

Derived terms

• Nibelungenlied
• Nibelungentreue