Yow
/jaʊ/noun
A dialectal or Scots word meaning a ewe, or female sheep.
Did you know?Yow ultimately traces back to the Proto-Indo-European word *h₂ówis*, an ancient term for sheep preserved across widely separated languages.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂ówis
“Sheep, especially a ewe”
Proto-Germanic
Germanic
*awi
“Ewe”
Old English
Old English
ēowu
“Ewe or female sheep”
Middle English
Middle English
ewe / yow
“A female sheep; dialectal forms developed alongside the standard form”
Modern English
English
yow
“A Scots or northern dialect word for a ewe”