Etymology

ON had the wk. masc. n. represented by OIcel mosi in both the sense ‘bog, moorland’ and ‘moss’ (the plant-name), with which cp. the related str. neut. n. found as OS mos, WFris, MDu mos and Sw, Dan mos (in the sense 'moss' only), OHG mos (with both senses), and OE mos (‘bog’ only). The sense 'moss' is first attested in English in a 12c. ms of OE DurGl 244 (glossing Lat muscus) as <mose>, which has been argued to show both semantic and morphemic influence from the wk. ON n. (thus ODEE). It is plausible, however, that both senses were current in early OE and most commentators are content with a native derivation. The matter is further complicated by the existence of both MLat mossa, mosa ‘moor, peatbog’, mossum ‘moss’ and OFr mosse ‘moss’ (see OED, AND s.v. mosse; Lat mossa is also noticed by MED).

PGmc Ancestor

*musa(n)-

Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)

mosi 'bog, moorland; moss'
(ONP mosi (sb.))

Other Scandinavian Reflexes

Far mosi, Icel mosi, Norw mose, Dan mos, mose, OSw mos, mose, Sw mossa, mosse

OE Cognate

mos ‘bog’ 

Phonological and morphological markers

Summary category

CCC3ab

Attestation

As a lexical item the word in the sense ‘moss’ is relatively widespread by later ME.  For the place-name evidence see EPNE (mainly found in the N and NWM), MED and further Elliott 1984: 148–9.

Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus

Gaw 745

Bibliography

MED mōs (n.1) (sense 1) , OED3 moss (n.1) (senses 3–4), ODEE moss, HTOED , Dance mosse, Bj. 250, de Vries mosi, Mag. mosi, Orel *musōn ~ *musan, Kroonen *musa(n)-, AEW mos, EPNE mos, mosi