Beck
/bɛk/noun
A small stream or brook, especially in parts of northern England.
Did you know?In northern English place-names, beck is one of the clearest surviving traces of Old Norse influence on the English landscape vocabulary.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*bekkaz
“stream, brook”
Old Norse
ON
bekkr
“stream, brook”
Old English
OE
bece
“stream, brook (dialectal/limited regional use)”
Middle English
ME
bekke
“stream, brook”
Modern English
English
beck
“a small stream, especially in northern England”