herr

See also: Herr

Albanian

Etymology

From Proto-Albanian *skarna, from Proto-Indo-European *sker- (“to cut”). Related to harr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /hɛr/

Noun

herr f (plural herra, definite herri, definite plural herrat)

1. dwarf, small creature

Related terms

• harr
• harrje
• harlë

Danish

Etymology

Formed from herre (“gentleman, master”) by the same mechanism as grev, kong, fru. Note that Danish usually doesn't allow double consonants in non-intervocalic contexts.

Particle

herr

1. (dated) mister (title)
   • 1942, Carlo Andersen, Politiet beder os efterlyse, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

     »Det var et ganske besynderligt Indkøb, Herr Jensen,« indrømmede Wengel, i et krampagtigt Forsøg paa at oparbejde den fornødne Interesse.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 1921, Ingeniøren: ugeblad udgivet af Dansk Ingeniørforening:

     Vi undlader dog ikke at bemærke, at vi, forinden Prøven blev afholdt, paa alle Maader søgte at overbevise Herr Jensen om, at en sammenlignende Prøve foretaget paa den Maade vilde være spildt Ulejlighed.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Usage notes

Today, appears almost exclusively in the abbreviated form hr.

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Norse ᚺᚨᚱᛃᚨ (harja) (accusative), from Proto-Germanic *harjaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“war”).

Noun

herr m (genitive herjar)

1. crowd, multitude; host (as in a host of men)
2. army, host, troops (on land or sea)
3. (in the plural) men, warriors

Declension

Declension of herr (strong ja-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	herr	herrinn	herjar	herjarnir
accusative	her	herinn	herja	herjana
dative	her	herinum	herjum	herjunum
genitive	herjar	herjarins	herja	herjanna

Derived terms

• einherjar pl (“dead warriors in Valhalla”)
• landherr (“land-host”)
• -arr (see there)

Related terms

• Herjann

Descendants

• Icelandic: her
• Faroese: herur
• Norwegian Nynorsk: her
• Old Swedish: hær
  • Swedish: här
• Danish: hær
  • Norwegian Bokmål: hær
    • → Norwegian Nynorsk: hær

Further reading

Zoëga, Geir T. (1910), “herr”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press; also available at the Internet Archive

Swedish

Etymology

Clipping of herre. Likely influenced by Middle Low German her and German Herr.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɛr/, [hærː]

Noun

herr c

1. (dated, formal) Mr., Mister, gentleman, sir (respectful term of address or title for an adult male)

   Coordinate term: fru

   Har herr Nilsson ringt än?

   Has Mr. Nilsson called yet?

   Ja, herr president!

   Yes, Mr. President!

   Vad vill herrn ha till efterrätt?

   What would you like for dessert, sir? [What would the gentleman like for dessert?]

Usage notes

Since the you-reform of the 1960s and '70s, using first names is generally preferred, except in the most formal settings. For example, a male speaker of the Riksdag is customarily addressed as herr talman ("Mr. Speaker").

Declension

Declension of herr

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	herr	herrs
	definite	herrn	herrns
plural	indefinite	herrar	herrars
	definite	herrarna	herrarnas

References

• herr in Svenska Akademiens ordböcker