Meaning and Origin
What does the name Sable mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
User Submitted Origins
User Submitted Meanings
- A user from Michigan, U.S. says the name Sable is of Slavic origin and means "A marten with a short tail and dark brown fur, native to Japan and Siberia and valued for its fur. the fur of the sable".
- [Zoöl] A carnivorous animal of the Weasel family (Mustela zibellina) native of the northern latitudes of Europe, Asia, and America, -- noted for its fine, soft, and valuable fur.
- The fur of the sable.
- A mourning garment; a funeral robe; -- generally in the plural." Sableswove by destiny." [Young.]
- [Her] The tincture black; -- represented by vertical and horizontal lines crossing each other.
Note: ☞ The sable resembles the marten, but has a longer head and ears. Its fur consists of a soft under wool, with a dense coat of hair, overtopped by another still longer. It varies greatly in color and quality according to the locality and the season of the year. The darkest and most valuable furs are taken in autumn and winter in the colder parts of Siberia, Russia, and British North America.
Note: ☞ The American sable, or marten, was formerly considered a distinct species (Mustela Americana), but it differs very little from the Asiatic sable, and is now considered only a geographical variety.
Etymology: OF. sable, F. zibeline sable (in sense 4), LL. sabellum; cf. D. sabel, Dan. sabel zobel, Sw. sabel sobel, G. zobel; all fr. Russ. sóbole
- Marten of northern Asian forests having luxuriant dark brown fur
- A scarf (or trimming) made of sable
- An artist's brush made of sable hairs
- A very dark black
- The expensive dark brown fur of the marten
- Of a dark somewhat brownish black
Attested since 1275, from Middle English, from Old French sable and martre sable (“sable martin”), in reference to the animal or its fur; from Medieval Latin sabelum, from Middle Low German sabel (compare Middle Dutch sabel, Middle High German zobel); ultimately from a Balto-Slavic word (compare Russian со́боль (sóbolʹ), Polish soból, Czech sobol). Compare also Middle Persian smwl (*samōr).
- A small carnivorous mammal of the Old World that resembles a weasel, Martes zibellina, from cold regions in Eurasia and the North Pacific islands, valued for its dark brown fur (Wikipedia).
- The marten, especially Martes americana (syn. Mustela americana).
- The fur or pelt of the sable or other species of martens; a coat made from this fur.
- An artist's brush made from the fur of the sable (Wikipedia).
- (heraldry) A black colour on a coat of arms.
- A black colour, resembling the fur of some sables.
-
- (in the plural, sables) Black garments, especially worn in mourning.
sable was also found in the following language(s): Asturian, Basque, Catalan, French, Old French, Portuguese, and Spanish