A
kenning is a metaphoric compound used in place of a noun in
Old English and
Old Norse poetry. Poems like
Beowulf are saturated with kennings - these devices were clearly thought of as one of the most artful forms of poetic expression. According to the
Oxford English Dictionary, the term "kenning" was first used in medieval Icelandic treatises on poetry. The term is related to the Old English word
cennan, to declare, and the Old Norse
kenna, to know or to name.
Kennings are often beautiful and mysterious - they are like delicious little riddles that constantly pop up, and figuring them out can be both challenging and fun.
For example:
OE: hron rad, or "whale road" = the sea
ON: hranna há-dýr, or "great wave beasts" = ships
ON: svana fjöll, or "swans' mountains" = waves
OE: roderes candel, or "Heaven's candle" = the sun
OE: banhus, or "bone house" = the human body
OE: lyftfloga or "sky-flyer" = a dragon
Some kennings are more obscure and thus harder to decipher, for example:
OE: fugol wyn or "bird's joy" = feather
OE: fela laf or "files' leaving" = sword (i.e. what is left when the metal is filed)
Some of these old poetic devices entered common usage, and a few even survive to this day. For example:
ON: vindauga, or "wind eye", became Middle English windoghe which became modern English "window".