Auðhumbla

Old Norse Audhumbla Alternative forms non Auðhumla Auðumbla Auðumla Etymology Generally accepted to derive from non auðr riches + non *humala hornless. The compound presents some level of semantic ambiguity. A parallel occurs in Scottish en humble-cow hornless cow, and Northern Europeans have bred hornless cows since prehistoric times. As highlighted above, auð- may mean "rich"; and in turn, "rich hornless cow" remains generally accepted among scholars as a gloss of the Old Icelandic animal name. However, auðr can also mean "fate" and "desolate; desert", and so Auðhum(b)la may also have been understood as the "destroyer of the desert". This semantic ambiguity may have been intentional. Proper noun f non Norse mythology the primeval cow References Liberman, Anatoly (2016). In Prayer and Laughter. Essays on Medieval Scandinavian and Germanic Mythology, Literature, and Culture. Paleograph Press. 9785895260272