Carr
/kɑːr/noun
A low-lying area of wetland, often containing waterlogged woodland or scrub.
Did you know?Many English place names ending in “-carr” preserve the Old Norse word for brushwood or swampy woodland, revealing where Viking settlers once described the landscape.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic (reconstructed)
Proto-Germanic
*kerwą
“A thicket or brushwood area; the precise reconstruction is uncertain.”
Viking Age
Old Norse
kjarr
“Brushwood, scrub, or a wooded marsh.”
11th–13th Century
Old Norse
kjarr
“A patch of dense vegetation, especially in damp ground.”
14th Century
Middle English
carre
“A marshy or swampy place, often wooded.”
Modern English
English
carr
“Wet woodland, marsh, or low-lying waterlogged ground.”