Mara
/ˈmɑːrə/noun
A female given name and, in various traditions, a figure associated with sorrow, temptation, or a night spirit.
Did you know?In Old Norse tradition, a mara was a night spirit believed to sit on sleepers and cause oppressive dreams, which is one source behind the modern idea of a “nightmare.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*mer-
“to die, waste away”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*marōn-
“a night spirit or incubus-like being”
Old Norse
ON
mara
“an oppressive night spirit that caused bad dreams”
Old English
OE
mare
“a nightmare; a goblin or incubus”
Modern English
English
mare
“chiefly poetic or historical: a nightmare or oppressive dream spirit”