hjúkrunarkona

Icelandic

Etymology

From hjúkrun (“nursing”) +‎ kona (“woman”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈçuːkʰrʏnarˌkʰɔːna/, [ˈçuːkʰrʏnɐrˌkʰɔːnɐ]

Noun

hjúkrunarkona f (genitive singular hjúkrunarkonu, nominative plural hjúkrunarkonur)

1. (dated or historical) a female nurse, a woman trained to provide care for the sick

   Nýbökuð hjúkrunarkona.

   A newly qualified nurse.

Usage notes

This term is not used officially any more and has largely been replaced by hjúkrunarfræðingur after nursing was established as a university programme in Iceland. It is appropriate in a historical context to refer to nurses under the old system. It also continues to be used by some, especially older people, to refer to modern nurses, but is considered by others to be outdated, even somewhat sexist or otherwise offensive. The newer term hjúkrunarfræðingur is also gender-neutral, while hjúkrunarkona refers specifically to a woman.

Synonyms

• (nurse): (colloquial) hjúkka, (approximate equivalent, gender-neutral) hjúkrunarfræðingur