ljungeld

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish liungelder, from liugnelder, from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“to shine”). Compare Old English liegetu and Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌷𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌹 (lauhmuni).

Noun

ljungeld c (usually countable)

1. (dated, poetic) (a bolt of) lightning, a lightning bolt (a single discharge of lightning)

   Synonym: blixt

   • 1917 October 31, 1773 års bibelkommission, “Lukasevangeliet 10:18 [Luke 10:18]”, in 1917 års kyrkobibel‎, © Svenska Bibelsällskapet, accessed at Bible.com, archived from the original on 29 August 2025:

     Då sade han till dem: »Jag såg Satan falla ned från himmelen såsom en ljungeld.»

     Then he said to them, "I saw Satan fall from heaven like a lightning bolt."

   • 1927, Karin Boye, “Stjärnfall, som natten stänker”, in Härdarna [The Hearths]‎, Albert Bonniers förlag, accessed at Litteraturbanken.se, courtesy of Göteborgs universitetsbibliotek, archived from the original on 29 August 2025:

     Stjärnfall, som natten stänker, ljungeldar, som i flykten blänker, stolta solar, som mörkret dränker – vem vill kalla det för undergång?

     Falling stars that sprinkle the night, lightning bolts that flash in their flight, arrogant suns that drown the darkness – who'd want to call it destruction?

Declension

Declension of ljungeld

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	ljungeld	ljungelds
	definite	ljungelden	ljungeldens
plural	indefinite	ljungeldar	ljungeldars
	definite	ljungeldarna	ljungeldarnas

References

• ljungeld in Svenska Akademiens ordböcker
• ljungeld in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)
• liughnelder in Knut Fredrik Söderwall, Ordbok öfver svenska medeltids-språket, del 1: A-L