Skep
/skɛp/noun
A domed basket or container, especially a traditional straw beehive.
Did you know?Skep comes from Old English and is ultimately tied to a Germanic root meaning a container or basket, showing how beekeeping was once literally built around woven vessels rather than wooden boxes.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*skei-
“to split, cut, or separate”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*skep- / *skip-
“a basket or container made from split material”
Old English
OE
sceppe
“a basket, especially one for holding or carrying”
Middle English
ME
skep
“a basket; later, a straw beehive”
Modern English
English
skep
“a domed straw basket used as a traditional beehive”