guykerl

English

Etymology

From English gyre-carlin, from Old Norse gýgr (“ogress”) + English carline (“old woman”).

Noun

guykerl (plural guykerls)

1. (Shetland) A giantess, typically a giant wife.
   • 1932, Jessie Margaret Edmondston Saxby, Shetland Traditional Lore, page 132:

     He went up his hill for a large stone he knew would be sufficient, but as he was returning, staggering under the weight of the enormous boulder, his Guykerl saw him and cried out jeeringly.

   • 1981, James R. Nicolson, Shetland Folklore, page 91:

     The giantesses or guykerls seem to have survived their husbands for some considerable time, for they continued to play an active part in folklore.

See also

• gyre-carlin