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gold-withy
DCHP-2 (Jun 2016)
Spelling variants:gowithy, goowiddy, Gouldwithy, Gould-withy, Gold-withy gould withy, goldworthy
n. — Newfoundland, Flora
a sheep laurel or similar type of low shrub (see Image 1).
Type: 2. Preservation — While the term gold-withy in Newfoundland is most frequently associated with Kalmia angustifolia, or sheep laurel, the name is also used for similar types of low-lying shrubs (see the 1973 quotation). Preserved from British English, gold-withy originally referred to Myrica gale (EDD, s.v. "gold" (2)). However, when the term travelled to Newfoundland with English settlers, it semantically expanded to include the sheep laurel and other similar short plants (see the 1987 quotation) that were local to Newfoundland. The plant is highly toxic when consumed by wild animals, thus earning the additional nickname "lambkill". Gold-withy appears most frequently in Canada (see Chart 1).
See also DNE, s.v. "gold-withy".
See also DNE, s.v. "gold-withy".
Quotations
1884
The barrens when not marshy are usually covered with low crooked spruce and goldworthy (899) bushes and are often hummocky. [...] (899) Sheep laurel; often spelled gold-withy.
1937
On marshes and barrens we find Rhodora; Bog Rosemary; and two Kalmias: first the few-flowered one, and later the showy K. angustifolia. Rev. Philip Tocque says the steeped leaves are a cure for mange in dogs. It is said that these plants are poisonous and kill goats and sheep. They are called Lambkill and Gouldwithy. One historian thinks Witless Bay may derive its name from Withy, here pronounced "Witty," Willow, but the present writer has another theory.
1948
At this time of the year when sheep first begin to stray away from the barn, there is a danger that some of them will eat Lambkill, a poisonous weed sometimes referred to locally as Gould-withy.
1952
The rising land on all sides is rocky and treeless and covered with thick blackberry bushes, lichens, and goldworthy. A short distance inland are scrub trees which finally merge into thick forest a few miles farther on towards Seldom.
1973
Andromeda glaucophylla Link. is called Bog-Rosemary. In Newfoundland it is sometimes called Crystal-berry or Gold-Withy. These last two names show the confusion that can creep in with common names. [...] Gold-withy is used by various people for any of eight species! Dr. Ernest Rouleau believes it should only be used for Kalmia angustifolia, the sheep Laurel.
1987
Gold-withy and Goowiddy - Andromeda glaucophylla Link [Bog-Rosemary], Chamaedaphne calyculata (L.) Moench [Leatherleaf], Cornus stolonifera Michx. [Red-osier Dogwood], Kalmia angustifolia L. [Sheep Laurel], K. polifolia Wang. [Bog Laurel], Myrica gale L. [Sweet Gale], Potentilla fruticosa L. [Shrubby Cinquefoil], and Rhododendron canadense (L.) Torr. [Rhodora]. In England, 'Withy' has been used since early times to refer to Salix spp. and to their flexible branches (OED). 'Gold-withy' has been used for Myrica gale L. (1 & 2) and presumably in Newfoundland its use has been extended to other species of short shrubs.
1990
The community pasture is still used under rural development, but John's not involved any more. There was a problem with "goowiddy" (sheep laurel) spreading over the pasture, but most of the sheep run wild over at Cape St. Mary's so the weedy shrub's not a major problem.
1994
SWEET GALE AND BAYBERRY. Members of the wax-myrtle family (Myricaceae), sweet gale (Myrica gale Linnaeus) and bayberry (M. Pensylvanica Loiseleur) are aromatic shrubs that form part of the indigenous flora of Newfoundland. The deciduous sweet gale is found in bogs and shallow waters. Also called gold-withy qv, as are numerous shrubs of the barrens, it produces aromatic resin through its leaves and young twigs.
2001
A bay is not just a bay here, where Newfoundland dogs have webbed feet and Labradors retrieve. It could be a bight, a tickle, a cove, a gut, a harbour, an inlet, a fjord even, thousands of them all woven into 17,000 kilometres of coastline. Near the inexplicably named Pissamore Falls in the Terra Nova Park area, hikers can see "goowiddy," the local name for sheep laurel which is loathed by moose and planted along highways to keep them off the roads. The village of Rencontre is pronounced Ron Connor. Francois becomes Fran Sway.
References
- EDD
- DNE
Images
Image 1: A gold-withy (Source: Wikimedia Commons. Drawing: Mary Vaux Walcott, copyright expired)
