Etymology

Always derived from ON, cp. OIcel < PGmc *lōfōn (cp. Go lofa 'palm of hand'). The root does occur in OE, but only in the prefixed form glōf, glōfe, glōfa 'glove' < *ga-lōf- (cp. OIcel glófi).

PGmc Ancestor

*lōfōn

Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)

lófi 'palm'
(ONP lófi (sb.))

Other Scandinavian Reflexes

Far lógvi, Icel lófi, Norw love, ODan love, Dan love, Sw love

OE Cognate

cp. glōf, glōfe, glōfa 'glove'

Phonological and morphological markers

Summary category

C1c

Attestation

First cited by MED from c1330(?a1300) Tristrem (Auch) and for the most part cited in N and E texts thereafter; N and Sc in MnE dial. (EDD, OED).

Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus

Cl 987; Erk 349; WA *800, 2067, 2569

TPD introduce the instance at WA 800, emending MS A hand for the sake of the alliteration (see their 923n).

Bibliography

MED lọ̄ve (n.3) , OED loof (n.1) , HTOED , EDD loof (sb.), Bj. 217, de Vries lófi (2), Mag. lófi (1), Orel *lōfōn, Kroonen *lōfan- ~ *lappan-, DOE glōf, glōfe, glōfa, AEW glōf(e)