CRONE

[Dr. Goodword]

• crone •

Pronunciation: kron • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A withered or shriveled woman, wrinkled by age.

Notes: While we are on the subject of old women (see also anile), here is another only slightly offensive way of referring to an old woman. It has no relation to crony, a word that apparently emerged from 17th century Cambridge University slang, probably influenced by Greek khronios "long-lasting".

In Play: Although some dictionaries claim that a crone must be ugly, even nasty or intemperate, I have decided not to include these attitudes as part of today's definition: "Faye Slift spent most of her dearly departed husband's money in the avoidance of becoming a crone as she aged." The critical characteristic of crones is that they are shriveled by age: "The advantage of becoming an old crone is that you can again fit the clothes you wore in high school."

Word History: Our best guess today is that crone came from Old North French carogne "carrion", which was also used for a cantankerous old woman. The Old French word came from Vulgar Latin caronia "carrion", a word that went on to become French charogne "carrion, rotting carcass". The root underlying this word was originally Latin car(n)o "flesh, meat", a word that changed little, reaching Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish as carne, as in Spanish chili con carne "chili with meat". This word also turned up in carnaticum "slaughter of animals", which French converted to another word English borrowed: carnage. Latin inherited this root from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker- "cut" with a Fickle S, since carrion could be the remains of a butchered animal. The S on this root remained in Germanic languages and ended up in English as the verb shear.

[Slava]

The word history reminds me of the two vultures delayed at the airport. It seems they were allowed only one carrion each.

[Perry]

Anyone born after the 30's is bound to think of this when the word crone is used.

[Stargzer]

Anyone born after the 30's is bound to think of this when the word crone is used.

Her cousin dispensed a certain frozen treat instead of poisoned apples; she was the ice cream crone.

Could this word not have come from Greek kronos (Κρόνος)?

(Click LSJ on the page)

Κρόνος , o(, Cronos, Hes.Th.137, Op.111, Il.8.479, 14.203, A.Pr. 203, Eu.641; οἷς δὴ βασιλεὺς K. ἦν 'in the golden age', Cratin.165;
A. “ὁ ἐπὶ Κρόνου βίος” Arist.Ath.16.7.—Later interpreted as, = χρόνος, cf. Arist.Mu.401a15.

2. ὁ τοῦ K. (sc. ἀστήρ) the planet Saturn, Id.Metaph.1073b35, Mu.392a24, 399a11; so later Κρόνος, ὁ, Placit.2.32.1, Cleom.2.7; ἡ τοῦ K. ἡμέρα Saturday, D.C.37.16.

II. nickname for a dotard, old fool, Ar.Nu.929, V.1480, Pl.Euthd.287b, Hyp.Fr. 252.




(Click Middle Liddell on the page)

Κρόνος 1 κραίνω

I. Cronus, identified with the Lat. Saturnus, son of Uranos and Gaia, husband of Rhea, father of Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter and Hestia, Hes.: he reigned in heaven until his sons banished him to Tartarus, Il., Aesch.; his time was the golden age, Hes.

II. a name at Athens, a superannuated old dotard, old fool, Ar.

Or, if you prefer Latin:

chrŏnĭcus , a, um, adj., = χρονικός,
I. pertaining to time: “libri,” chronicles, Gell. 17, 21, 1; so also absol.: chrŏnĭca , ōrum, n., = τὰ χρονικά, Plin. 35, 9, 35, § 58; Gell. 17, 4, 5; 17, 15, 1; and in sing.: “in primo chronico,” id. 17, 21, 3: “morbi,” chronic, lingering, Isid. Orig. 4, 7; opp. acuti morbi.— Hence the work of Caelius Aurelianus is entitled De morbis acutis et chronicis ["Concerning violent and lingering disease" (Stargzer)].

A Latin Dictionary. Founded on Andrews' edition of Freund's Latin dictionary. revised, enlarged, and in great part rewritten by. Charlton T. Lewis, Ph.D. and. Charles Short, LL.D. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1879.

[MTC]

Crones, it seems, have been given a bad rap. There are benevolent crones too, according to Joseph Campbell. In The Hero with a Thousand Faces, p. 59. Campbell links the "fairy godmother" of folklore and fairytale to the helpful or benevolent crone. Snow White encountered a malevolent crone, always more fun to talk about than the benevolent crone, goodness often being a bore.

After the veer toward ageism and misogyny with "anile" and "crone" perhaps it would be fair to balance the Goodword selection with some male pejoratives, or at least words more friendly to the fair sex.