Lost Word Of The Day (47)

An archetypal image of an English country village is a green surrounded by thatched cottages. Idyllic it might look, but a thatched roof does not last for ever. It is generally accepted that a water reed roof, which lasts anything between thirty to 50 years, is longer lasting than a combed wheat or long straw which have an expected life of between 20 to thirty years. There are over 60,000 properties with thatched roofs in the UK and while there are about 800 thatchers working in England, there is only one in Scotland.  

It is an art that comes with its own distinct glossary of terms. Yelm is both an intransitive verb meaning to prepare bundles of straw for thatching and a noun meaning a bundle of straw used for thatching. It comes from the Old English gelm or gilm meaning a sheaf.

As I have a tiled roof, I’m not sure it is a word I will be using much.