hof

See also: Hof, HOF, Hoff, and hóf

English

Etymology 1

Borrowed from German Hof. Doublet of howff.

Noun

hof (plural hofs)

Enclosure, court, dwelling, building, house.
- 1993 May, William, Trevor, Jake's Castle, in Harper's Magazine:
  Ulrike lived in a farm hof, and all around me were the dark blank fields punctuated by a few disparate lights.
- 2009, Chloe Aridjis, Book of Clouds (New York: Black Cat, 1st edition):
  Like many old houses, this one had a front section, where I lived, and at the back an interior courtyard, the Hof, enclosed on all three sides by more apartments.

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Old Norse hof or Old English hof, reinforced in modern (post-1990, chiefly neopagan) use by Icelandic hof (“shrine, temple”).

Pronunciation

enPR: hōf, IPA^(key): /hoʊf/
- Audio (Southern England) (file)
Rhymes: -oʊf

Noun

hof (plural hofs)

(Germanic paganism) temple, sanctuary, hall.
- 1996, Varg Vikernes, cited after Gardell, Gods of the Blood, 2003, p. 307.
  For each ten churches burned to ashes, one heathen hof is avenged.
- 2005, Michael Strmiska, Modern Paganism In World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives, p. 170.
  Asatruarfelagid lacks a central religious temple, or hof in Icelandic. Constructing a hof has been high on the members' wish list for many years.
- 2014 November 18, Stubba, The Book of Blots‎, page 102:
  The Candidate for membership of Hof, Garth or Hearth shall hold an Armill, or he may touch an unsheathed Sword throughout the ceremony.

Synonyms

garth

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Korean 호프 (hopeu), in turn from German Hofbräuhaus. In English, the spelling has been re-aligned with the Korean term's etymon.

Noun

hof (plural hofs)

A Korean-style bar or pub.
- 2009, January 4, “Adam B. Ellick”, in In Queens: A Melting Pot, and a Closed Book‎:
  To the south are Korean spas, Korean barbecue joints and hofs, or Korean pubs.

Anagrams

FOH, foh

Cimbrian

Alternative forms

hoff (Sette Comuni)

Etymology

From Middle High German and Old High German hof, from Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą. Cognate with German Hof.

Noun

hof m

(Luserna) garden

Danish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /hɔf/, [ˈhʌf]

Etymology 1

From Middle Low German hof, from Old Saxon hof, from Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą, cognate with German Hof (“yard, court, farmyard”), Dutch hof (“yard, court, garden”), Old Norse hof (“shrine; court”). Doublet of hov (“shrine, temple”).

Noun

hof n (singular definite hoffet, plural indefinite hoffer)

court (family and society of a sovereign)
admirers

Inflection

Declension of hof

neuter gender	Singular		Plural
neuter gender	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	hof	hoffet	hoffer	hofferne
genitive	hofs	hoffets	hoffers	hoffernes

References

“hof” in Den Danske Ordbog
“Hof,1” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Etymology 2

Clipping of hofpilsner, from hof (“court”) +‎ pilsner (“lager beer”).

Noun

hof c (singular definite hoffen, plural indefinite hof)

Carlsberg beer

Inflection

Declension of hof

common gender	Singular		Plural
common gender	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	hof	hoffen	hof	hoffene
genitive	hofs	hoffens	hofs	hoffenes

References

“Hof,2” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch hof, from Old Dutch *hof, from Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɦɔf/
audio (file)
Hyphenation: hof
Rhymes: -ɔf
Homophone: Hof

Noun

hof n or m (plural hoven, diminutive hofje n)

court, residence of a monarch or other high-placed person
court, entourage of a monarch or other high-placed person
court of law; short form of gerechtshof
court, yard
(Belgium) garden

Derived terms

arbitragehof
hoffelijk
hofleverancier
Hofstad
hof van beroep
hof van cassatie
hoveling
kerkhof
lusthof
rekenhof
tepelhof

Descendants

Afrikaans: hof
Negerhollands: hofje, hofi, hoffie (from the diminutive)
→ Papiamentu: hòfi, hoffie (from the diminutive)

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /hɔːv/
Rhymes: -ɔːv

Noun

hof n (genitive singular hofs, nominative plural hof)

shrine, typically in a home on farm; by extension a temple

Declension

declension of hof

	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
n-s	singular		plural
nominative	hof	hofið	hof	hofin
accusative	hof	hofið	hof	hofin
dative	hofi	hofinu	hofum	hofunum
genitive	hofs	hofsins	hofa	hofanna

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch *hof.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /hɔf/

Noun

hof n or m

court, enclosed space
garden
farmstead
castle (court of the nobility)

Inflection

Declension of hof (strong)

	Singular	Plural
nominative	hof	hove
accusative	hof	hove
genitive	hoves	hove
dative	hove	hoven

Derived terms

hōvesch

Descendants

Dutch: hof
- Afrikaans: hof
- Negerhollands: hofje, hofi, hoffie (from the diminutive)
- → Papiamentu: hòfi, hoffie (from the diminutive)
Limburgish: haof, hoof
→ Scots: howff
- → English: howff

Old English

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /xof/, [hof]

Noun

hof n (nominative plural hofu)

court, hall
house, building

Declension

Declension of hof (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	hof	hofu
accusative	hof	hofu
genitive	hofes	hofa
dative	hofe	hofum

Descendants

Middle English: *hof, *hove
- Scots: hoff, howf, hoif, hoiff
- ⇒ Middle English: hovel, hovil, hovylle (diminutive)
  - English: hovel

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *hōfaz.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /xoːf/, [hoːf]

Noun

hōf m

a hoof

Declension

Declension of hof (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	hōf	hōfas
accusative	hōf	hōfas
genitive	hōfes	hōfa
dative	hōfe	hōfum

Descendants

English: hoof

Old Frisian

Ēn hof.

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą, from Proto-Indo-European *kewp- (“to bend”). Cognates include Old English hof, Old Saxon hof and Old Dutch *hof.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈhof/

Noun

hof n

court

Descendants

North Frisian: hof
Saterland Frisian: Hoaf
West Frisian: hôf

Ēn hōf.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *hōfaz, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱoph₂ós. Cognates include Old English hōf, Old Saxon hōf and Old Dutch *huof.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈhoːf/

Noun

hōf m

hoof

Descendants

Saterland Frisian: Houf, Houch
West Frisian: hoef

References

Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009) An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *hufą (“hill, house, temple”).

Pronunciation

(12th century Icelandic) IPA^(key): /ˈhov/

Noun

hof n (genitive hofs, plural hof)

(Germanic paganism) shrine, typically in a home of a farm
- Vǫluspá, verse 7, lines 3-4, in 1860, T. Möbius, Edda Sæmundar hins fróða: mit einem Anhang zum Theil bisher ungedruckter Gedichte. Leipzig, page 2:
  […] þeir er hörg ok hof / hátimbruðu, […]
  […] they who shrines and temples / high timbered, […]
a hall, court
- Hymiskviða, verse 33, lines 3-4, in 1860, T. Möbius, Edda Sæmundar hins fróða: mit einem Anhang zum Theil bisher ungedruckter Gedichte. Leipzig, page 48:
  […] út or óru / ölkjól hofi. […]
  […] forth from our house / the cauldron here. […]
a royal court

Usage notes

Old Norse makes the distinction between hof "a hall, a sanctuary with a roof" and hǫrgr (“an altar, any cult site without a roof”).The prevalent meaning of hof in Old Norse literature is “temple, sanctuary”. Cleasby and Vigfússon (1874) note the generic meaning "a hall (as in German and Saxon)" in Hymiskviða 33 as a hapax legomenon. The meaning of “court” follows Middle High German and appears only from the 14th century and almost exclusively in compounds such as hof-ferð (“pride, pomp”), hof-garðr (“lordly mansion”), hof-folk (“courtiers”).

Declension

Declension of hof (strong a-stem)

neuter	singular		plural
neuter	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	hof	hofit	hof	hofin
accusative	hof	hofit	hof	hofin
dative	hofi	hofinu	hofum	hofunum
genitive	hofs	hofsins	hofa	hofanna

Coordinate terms

hǫrgr
vé

Derived terms

Terms derived from hof

blóthof (“heathen temple”)
hofferð (“pride, pomp”)
hofferðugr (“proud”)
hoffólk (“courtiers”)
hoffrakt (“pomp”)
hofgarðr (“lordly mansion”)
hofgoði (“temple-priest”)
hofgrið (“asylum in a sanctuary”)
hofgyðja (“priestess”)
hofhelgr (“temple-feast”)
hoflist (“pomp”)
hoflýðr (“courtiers”)
hofmaðr (“courtier”)
hofmóðugr (“haughty”)
hofprestr (“temple-priest”)
hofsdyrr (“temple-doors”)
hofseiðr (“temple-oath”)
hofsgoði (“temple-priest”)
hofshelgi (“sanctity of a temple”)
hofshurð (“temple-door”)
hofshǫfðingi (“temple-lord”)
hofsmold (“temple mold, holy mold”)
hofstaðr (“sanctuary”)
hofsteigr (“strip of temple-land”)
hoftollr (“temple-toll, rate”)
hoftyft (“urbanity”)
hofvaerk (“great feat”)
hofþénari (“court servant”)

Descendants

Icelandic: hof
Faroese: hov
Norwegian Nynorsk: hov, hov
Swedish: hov
→ English: hof

References

“hof”, in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
hof in An Icelandic-English Dictionary, R. Cleasby and G. Vigfússon, Clarendon Press, 1874, at Internet Archive.
hof in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, G. T. Zoëga, Clarendon Press, 1910, at Internet Archive.

Old Saxon

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *hof, from Proto-Germanic *hufą.

Noun

hof n

dwelling, hovel, house
court, hall

Descendants

Middle Low German: hof
- German Low German: Hoff
- Plautdietsch: Hoff
- → Danish: hof
- → Estonian: hoov
- → Norwegian: hoff
- → Old Swedish: hof
  - Swedish: hov
    - → Finnish: hovi
    - → Finnish: huovi
  - → Finnish: hovi

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *hōfaz.

Noun

hōf m

a hoof

Swedish

Noun

hof n

Obsolete spelling of hov (“royal court”)

Declension

Declension of hof
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	hof	hofvet	hof	hofven
Genitive	hofs	hofvets	hofs	hofvens

Noun

hof c

Obsolete spelling of hov (“hoof”)

Declension

Declension of hof
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	hof	hofven	hofvar	hofvarna
Genitive	hofs	hofvens	hofvars	hofvarnas

hof

English

Etymology 1

Noun

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

Synonyms

Etymology 3

Noun

Anagrams

Cimbrian

Alternative forms

Etymology

Noun

Further reading

Danish

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

Inflection

References

Etymology 2

Noun

Inflection

References

Dutch

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Descendants

Icelandic

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

Middle Dutch

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Inflection

Derived terms

Descendants

Further reading

Old English

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

Descendants

See also

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

Descendants

Old Frisian

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Descendants

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

Descendants

References

Old Norse

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Usage notes

Declension

Coordinate terms

Derived terms

Descendants

References

Old Saxon

Etymology 1

Noun