Lakes of the Lake District: Difference between revisions
better define the word mere using wiktionary
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Water is abundant here; reason alone for its green hues in summer and long, grey winters. There are hundreds of bodies of water in the Lake District, ranging in size from the largest lakes to the smallest pools, many more than most people would ever care to visit. The popular destinations are what brings the masses here to break away from everyday routine. From hardcore hikers and cyclists to the casual, fair-weather day trippers, visitors to the area who explore this great outdoors, do so because its appeal draws them in, time and time again. The lakes are just one, albeit predominantly so, reason for this influx of people every year.
By name alone, the Lake district has only one ''lake''
==Etymology==▼
The term "ice age" can be somewhat ambiguous. The earth is in an ice age called the Quaternary glaciation, which began around 2.58 million years ago and has had many periods of glacial advance and retreat. We are still in this ice age, as suggested by the ice caps present at the poles. However, we are currently experiencing an interglacial or warmer period. In the UK this period is called the {{w1|Flandrian interglacial}}.<ref name="lower-alpha">The Flandrian interglacial period started at the end of the Devensian glaciation (also known as the {{w2|Last Glacial Period|last glacial period}}), which was at its maximum approximately 22,000 years ago. This cold period had come to end around 11,700 years ago after which the earth saw a period of warming, the period that we are currently in.</ref> This led to retreating ice that left us with glacially "plucked" and eroded valleys that formed the lake district we see today. Not only the ice, but people too, are responsible for changing the landscape. [[Haweswater]] and [[Thirlmere]] are reservoirs, although the former was once a natural lake. It was dammed to raise the water level in a bid to supply fresh water for the people of Manchester, at a price that flooded two Cumbrian villages, now lost to the murky darkness. The once ebb and flow of ice and, in much more recent times, people, continue to have an effect on the natural backdrop of the second oldest national park in England after the Peak District.<ref group="lower-alpha">The Lake District National Park was formed on 9 May, 1951, second after that of the Peak District, which was formed on 17 April, 1951.</ref> ▼
Before we move on, let's have a quick look at where these words are derived. With so much Norse influence in the area
===The origin of "mere"===▼
The lakes have been immortalised in text and image by the very people, past and present, with a passion for this rugged landscape. The big lakes are the quintessence of Lakeland, and listed below are 17 bodies of water that give this National Park its name. How these are classified, one could rightly surmise, is by size. Whilst the humble [[tarn]] is usually reserved for the smaller bodies of water, size alone is not the only trait for the lakes. Some tarns bigger than the smallest of the big lakes, for example, [[Burnmoor Tarn]] near [[Wast Water]], and [[Seathwaite Tarn]] near the [[Old Man of Coniston]], both of which are bigger than [[Elter Water]] and [[Brothers Water]].<ref>Smith (2014), p.8.</ref> One could easily say that each of the lakes have their own distinctive character, companioned by the landscape in which they sit. Size, depth, inflows, outflows, location, and human intervention all play a vital role in our understanding of these expanses of water, which, seen from above, appear to radiate outwards from a central point near the fell of [[High Raise (Langdale)|High Raise]] in Langdale. ▼
The word ''mere'' comes from Old English ''[https://bosworthtoller.com/22650 mere]'', meaning a "lake" or a "pool". In compound words it could also mean "sea". It is interesting to note how the word, from its earliest root through to present day, has very similar meanings, not only through time but also across a broad spectrum of European countries.
From the original root word ''[[wiktionary:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/móri|móri]]'' (sea or standing water) the following descendants follow the English lineage:
Each lake below is the subject of a compendious listing, with a link to the lake's main article (when these have been written).▼
*Proto-Germanic ''[[wiktionary:Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/mari|*mari]]'' → sea, ocean, lake, body of water
*Proto-West-Germanic ''[[wiktionary:Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/mari|*mari]]'' → sea or lake
*Old English ''[[wiktionary:mere#Old_English|mere]]'' → lake, pool or (compound) sea
*Middle English ''[https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/middle-english-dictionary/dictionary/MED27421/track?counter=1&search_id=23362984 mere]'' → lake, pond, pool; also, a sea or an ocean
*English ''[[wiktionary:mere#Etymology_3|mere]]'' → A body of standing water, such as a lake or a pond. More specifically, it can refer to a lake that is broad in relation to its depth.
It should be noted that Old English ''mere'' also corresponds with Old Frisian ''mere'', Old Saxon ''meri'', Old Dutch ''*meri'' and Old High German ''meri''. It is cognate with West Frisian ''[[wiktionary:mar#Etymology_2_6|mar]]'', Dutch ''[[wiktionary:meer#Dutch|meer]]'', and German ''[[wiktionary:Meer#German|Meer]]''. Like the English lineage above, they also derive from the reconstructed Proto-Germanic ''*mari''.
▲==Etymology==
▲===The origin of "mere"===
The Indo-European root *''mori''
''Mere'' in the present instance refers to the names [[Buttermere]], [[Grasmere]], [[Kentmere]], [[Thirlmere]] and [[Windermere]], which are recorded from the late 12th or 13th century and would generally mean lake. The term "water" is used more often for the larger of the lakes<ref>Whaley, p.411</ref> although this is not strictly so as [[Blea Water]] is a tarn and smaller than all of the big lakes, with the exception of Elter Water.
===The origin of "water"===
The word ''water'' comes from ...
==Glacial origins==
▲The term "ice age" can be somewhat ambiguous. The earth is in an ice age called the Quaternary glaciation, which began around 2.58 million years ago and has had many periods of glacial advance and retreat. We are still in this ice age, as suggested by the ice caps present at the poles. However, we are currently experiencing an interglacial or warmer period. In the UK this period is called the {{w1|Flandrian interglacial}}.<ref name="lower-alpha">The Flandrian interglacial period started at the end of the Devensian glaciation (also known as the {{w2|Last Glacial Period|last glacial period}}), which was at its maximum approximately 22,000 years ago. This cold period had come to end around 11,700 years ago after which the earth saw a period of warming, the period that we are currently in.</ref> This led to retreating ice that left us with glacially "plucked" and eroded valleys that formed the lake district we see today. Not only the ice, but people too, are responsible for changing the landscape. [[Haweswater]] and [[Thirlmere]] are reservoirs, although the former was once a natural lake. It was dammed to raise the water level in a bid to supply fresh water for the people of Manchester, at a price that flooded two Cumbrian villages, now lost to the murky darkness. The once ebb and flow of ice and, in much more recent times, people, continue to have an effect on the natural backdrop of the second oldest national park in England after the Peak District.<ref group="lower-alpha">The Lake District National Park was formed on 9 May, 1951, second after that of the Peak District, which was formed on 17 April, 1951.</ref>
▲The lakes have been immortalised in text and image by the very people, past and present, with a passion for this rugged landscape. The big lakes are the quintessence of Lakeland, and listed below are 17 bodies of water that give this National Park its name. How these are classified, one could rightly surmise, is by size. Whilst the humble [[tarn]] is usually reserved for the smaller bodies of water, size alone is not the only trait for the lakes. Some tarns bigger than the smallest of the big lakes, for example, [[Burnmoor Tarn]] near [[Wast Water]], and [[Seathwaite Tarn]] near the [[Old Man of Coniston]], both of which are bigger than [[Elter Water]] and [[Brothers Water]].<ref>Smith (2014), p.8.</ref> One could easily say that each of the lakes have their own distinctive character, companioned by the landscape in which they sit. Size, depth, inflows, outflows, location, and human intervention all play a vital role in our understanding of these expanses of water, which, seen from above, appear to radiate outwards from a central point near the fell of [[High Raise (Langdale)|High Raise]] in Langdale.
▲Each lake below is the subject of a compendious listing, with a link to the lake's main article (when these have been written).
===Bassenthwaite Lake===
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