n.
‘bright (green)’ (Modern English enker)
PGmc Ancestor
(1) *ain-
Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)
einkar ‘especially/most/very, exceptionally’
(ONP einkar (adv.))
Other Scandinavian Reflexes
Far onka-, Norw einka, OSw enka, Sw enkom
OE Cognate
Phonological and morphological markers
Summary category
D1c
Neither enker (adv.) nor this compound/phrase are recorded anywhere else. Enkerli (adv.) (perhaps related; see etymological discussion (1)) is however attested in the AMA and in a handful of early Scots texts (see MED s.v. enkerlī (adv.), OED s.v. enkerly (adv.), Flom 1900: s.v. encrely, ynkirly).
Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus
Gaw 150, 2477
Often printed as two words (thus e.g. Madden, Morris, M(G), TG, GDS, AW, PS and so OED).