Alpineadj.n.
/ˈalpʌɪn/, U.S. /ˈælˌpaɪn/ A. adj.
1.
a. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the Alps (see Alp n.1 1a), the surrounding regions, or (in later use) any high mountains or mountainous regions.
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the world > the earth > land > landscape > high land > mountain > [adjective] > relating to or situated in
mountuousa1382
mountainousc1384
Alpine?a1475
Alpish1577
Alpian1607
Alpsian?1610
mountained1628
alpestral1697
subalpine1803
intermontane1807
montane1863
the world > the earth > land > landscape > high land > mountain > [adjective] > range > spec
Alpine?a1475
Pyrene?a1475
Riphaean1555
Pyrenean?1556
Pyrenee1590
hercynian1598
Alpic1611
Appalachian1672
Carpathian1673
Rhipaean1703
Alleghenian1740
Altaic1762
Altaian1780
Balkan1785
Uralian1801
Lepontine1802
Altai1824
Dinaric1833
Andean1845
Alpigene1847
Lepontian1857
Uralic1861
Himalayan1866
Cordilleran1891
Andine1900
Armorican1906
Variscan1906
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1872) IV. 49 (MED) Men of Fraunce..whiche hade commen to the hilles Alpyne [L. Alpes].
1580 J. Lyly Euphues (new ed.) f. 43 When thou shalt beholde the amiable blossomes of the Alpine tree in any woman, thou shun them, as a place infected..with poyson to kil thee.
1629 J. Maxwell tr. Herodian Hist. 112 Julian's friends counselled him to advance..and preclude the Alpine Straits.
a1644 F. Quarles Shepheards Oracles (1646) 3 The Alpine mountaines could not boast nor show So pure a whitnesse, white surpassing snow.
1705 J. Philips Blenheim 40 They journey..unstruck with Horror at the sight Of Alpine Ridges bleak.
1759 B. Stillingfleet tr. I. Biberg Oeconomy Nature in Misc. Tracts Nat. Hist. 57 Alpine plants..ripen their seeds very early.
1771 T. Pennant Tour Scotl. 1769 171 Over the gap is a true Alpine bridge of the bodies of trees covered with sods, from whose middle is an awefull view of the water roaring beneath.
1795 J. Hutton Theory Earth I. iv. 329 There would seem to be strata of coal alternated with alpine schisti.
1839 C. Darwin in R. Fitzroy & C. Darwin Narr. Surv. Voy. H.M.S. Adventure & Beagle III. xviii. 439 This..animal [sc. Vicuna] is pre-eminently alpine in its habits.
1847 G. Grote Hist. Greece III. xxv. 8 Mountains which rise..to an alpine height.
1861 W. F. Hook Lives Archbishops I. vii. 402 He..perished in the Alpine snows.
1907 Polit. Sci. Q. 22 771 The completion of the five-mile railway tunnel..opened up a new Alpine route.
1949 H. Wilcox White Stranger vi. 121 These [traders] came from Palopo,..having climbed more than forty miles of alpine paths with loads of salt and coconut oil.
1960 N.Y. Herald-Tribune 13 Nov. vii. 8/1 Dozens of snow-making machines are poised, ready to transform bare hillsides into Alpine paradises.
2007 Climb Mag. May (Alpine Rock Suppl.) 3/2 Most novice Alpinists are always chuffed to bits standing on their first Alpine summit.
b. In the names of animals and plants native to the Alps or other mountainous areas. See also Compounds 1.
ΚΠ
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 521 The Armelins are called Alpine mice.
1731 P. Miller Gardeners Dict. I. at Lapathum Round-leav'd Alpine Dock, by some call'd Monks Rhubarb.
1781 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. 12 Alpine Vulture: Vultur percnopterus.
1829 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom VII. 37 The..collared stare, Persian starling, and Alpine warbler.
1918 A. D. Webster Coniferous Trees i. 158 The Alpine Podocarp... This distinct and very interesting Tasmanian conifer may be seen..in several gardens.
1986 Scilly up to Date June 9 The rarest bird this Spring, was an Alpine Swift.
2010 Countryfile Feb. 61/3 Look for mountain pansy and cerulean alpine gentian.
2.
a. Designating equipment, clothing, etc., adapted to or intended for use in the Alps, or in Alpine regions or conditions.
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1611 L. Whitaker in T. Coryate Crudities sig. D*v An Alpine chaire to carry me at ease ouer the difficult and inuious precipices.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis viii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 460 Long Alpine Spears they wield: And their left Arm sustains a length of Shield.
1797 J. Moore in W. Mavor Voy., Trav., & Discov. XIX. 133 They dismissed their mules, and had recourse to some Alpine chairs, carried by men.
1825 M. Sherwill Let. 26 Aug. in E. Clark et al. Ascents Mont Blanc (1826) 44 The wind, as we continued to ascend, was bitterly cold... Coutet buttoned up closely his Alpine jacket.
1892 C. T. Dent et al. Mountaineering (Badminton Libr. of Sports & Pastimes) ii. 71 There is no part of the Alpine equipment..more important than the rope.
1913 W. Owen Let. 13 Nov. (1967) 211 Belt... 2[s.] 6[d.]... Alpine Boots... 10. 6.
1935 D. Pilley Climbing Days xi. 224 We..used 120 feet of Alpine line.
1963 ‘D. Rutherford’ Creeping Flesh i. 28 Sherman did not hesitate to use his alpine horns and kept to the centre lane.
1989 Great Outdoors Sept. 38/2 The single compartment alpine sacks are intended principally for climbers.
2001 V. Widman 4WD Driving Skills ix. 100 If driving a diesel vehicle, fill up..when you arrive as they use a special alpine mix in winter months.
b. Mountaineering. Of, relating to, or designating a climbing technique used in or associated with Alpine regions; originally applied to a technique in which climbers are roped together; now usually designating a manner of tackling high peaks involving a small party carrying a minimum of equipment and ascending from base to summit in a single stage. Cf. alpinism n.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > mountaineering or climbing > [adjective] > type of ascent
Alpine1879
roped1893
1879 Jrnl. Amer. Geogr. Soc. N.Y. 1877 9 63 We discovered..a natural snow-bridge across the crevasse, and by using our rope after the most approved Alpine fashion, we succeeded in crossing it in safety.
1921 Animal World (R.S.P.C.A.) Apr. 39/2 It was a perilous climb, and we went up roped together in Alpine style, so that one could help the other.
1935 Esquire 4 33/1 Half-way up the opposite wall of the canyon were other groups, roped together in Alpine-fashion and climbing.
1975 W. Unsworth Encycl. Mountaineering 86/1 In 1973, with Bonington, he reached the summit of Brammah Peak (Kishtwar Himal), a major breakthrough in approaching fairly big Himalayan peaks in an Alpine manner, rather than with a large expedition.
1987 J. Curran K2 i. i. 21 His determination to do a new route on K2 and to do it alpine-style, with no porters, oxygen, fixed ropes or camps, moving continuously upwards, carrying everything on your back.
2002 J. Simpson Beckoning Silence (2003) iii. 54 She told me of her plan to make an alpine-style ascent of the south face of Annapurna and I was astounded by its boldness.
c. Skiing. Of, relating to, or designating a style of fast downhill skiing first developed in the Alps, or a competition featuring this. Often opposed to cross-country or Nordic skiing.Cf. cross-country adj. Additions, Nordic adj. 2, Alpine touring n. at Compounds 1.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > winter sports > skiing > [adjective] > types of skiing
Alpine1903
cross-country1911
downhill1911
para-ski1942
Nordic1948
off-piste1959
heli-ski1982
back country1983
1903 Alpine Jrnl. July 346 The new system of Alpine skeeing, which enables a moderately active man to be safe on the most difficult ground after a few days' practice.
1903 Alpine Jrnl. Aug. 448 The secret of the Alpine skee is rigidity without loss of elasticity.
1930 A. Lunn Compl. Ski-runner i. 2 It is..only recently that the distinction between Alpine and Scandinavian ski-ing has been made clear.
1960 Sk-ing (‘Know the Game’ Series) 31/1 Competitive ski-ing is divided into two classes and each class is sub-divided. The Alpine events include downhill, slalom, and giant slalom, and the Nordic events include cross-country races and jumping competitions.
1975 Oxf. Compan. Sports & Games 954/1 Alpine skis have proliferated on an almost bewildering scale.
1981 Nordic Skiing Jan. 16/2 88% of top alpine racers have at least one serious injury during their careers.
2010 New Yorker 15 Mar. 63/2 Miller, the most successful American Alpine skier ever.
3. Geography and Ecology. Designating the zone lying between the treeline and the snowline of a mountain or mountain range; of, relating to, or characteristic of this zone.
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1813 T. Thomson Trav. Sweden xviii. 313 To the fourth zone Wahlenbergh [sic] gives the name of Lower Alpine Region.
1846 M. Johnston tr. F. J. F. Meyen Outl. Geogr. Plants iii. i. 250 The region of alpine plants commences on the heights of the mountains at the upper limit of bushes, and thence stretches to the perpetual snow which is the final limit of vegetation.
1909 E. Warming et al. Oecol. Plants lxxxviii. 322 On the Andes..there are ‘alpine meadows’.
1940 Geogr. Jrnl. 96 8 The seres which follow the destruction of climax vegetation in the alpine region [of the Himalayas] vary.
1976 D. Blood Rocky Mountain Wildlife i. ii. 165 Other species such as Say's phoebe, Townsend's solitaire, and savannah sparrow often may be seen in alpine habitats, too.
1998 P. Gourevitch We wish to inform You xviii. 286 At the top of the escarpment the forests fell back and the vast alpine pastures of Tutsi herdsmen opened out.
2005 C. Tudge Secret Life Trees v. 114 Species extend from the tundra treeline in Eurasia, up to the alpine treeline in Europe and the western United States.
4. Geology. Designating a mountain-building episode of Middle Tertiary times which chiefly affected southern Europe and Mediterranean regions and in which the Alps and a number of other mountain ranges were formed.
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1893 Nature 21 Sept. 490/2 We may have crystalline schists and gneisses..in Southern Europe of post-Cretaceous age produced in connection with the Alpine folding.
1933 W. H. Bucher Deformation Earth's Crust xii. 388 Heim denies that there was any definite break in the Alpine orogenic movements.
1968 R. W. Fairbridge Encycl. Geomorphol. 134/2 Many of the earth's coastlines..date originally from the last great geotectonic revolution, the Alpine orogeny.
2000 R. Redfern Origins (2001) vi. 124/1 At various stages during this intercontinental collision the region resembled different phases in the present Alpine orogeny.
5. Physical Anthropology. Designating a Caucasoid race or type associated mainly with central and eastern Europe, characterized by a skull of a rounded shape. Cf. round-headed adj. 3c. Now historical.
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the world > people > ethnicities > division of mankind by physical characteristics > other racial types > [adjective]
Ligurian1632
Mediterranean1876
Eurafrican1890
Alpine1894
Armenoid1894
Nordic1898
Eurasiatic1901
Veddoid1956
1894 J. Beddoe in Sci. Progr. July 422 The Mediterranean..does really predominate in the south [of Italy]..while in the north the broad-headed Alpine type is powerful.
1897 W. Z. Ripley in Pop. Sci. Monthly Apr. 767 The great central highland seemed..a veritable focus of this peculiar physical type... This geographical characterization of the broad-headed variety entitled it, in our opinion, to be called the Alpine type, in distinction from the two others above mentioned [sc. the Teutonic and the Mediterranean].
1921 E. Sapir Lang. x. 225 The mass of the German-speaking population..belong to..the shorter, darker-complexioned, short-headed Alpine race... The distribution of these ‘Alpine’ populations corresponds in part to that of the old continental ‘Celts’.
1934 R. Benedict Patterns of Culture (1935) i. 11 The so-called race line..is held to divide the people of Baden from those of Alsace, though in bodily form they alike belong to the Alpine sub-race.
2009 D. E. Bender Amer. Abyss i. 35 Patterns of head shapes helped Ripley map the migrations of different European races, from the Teuton to the Mediterranean to the Slav to the Alpine races.
B. n.
1. A native or inhabitant of the Alps or Alpine regions. Now rare.
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1751 J. Hill Hist. Materia Medica 314 We have a Part of England in which swell'd Throats, among the Women at least, are as common if not as great as among the Alpines.
1794 J. Whitaker Course Hannibal over Alps II. i. §iv. 53 A trusty Alpine servant, who as an Alpine is denominated a Maronnier.
1832 W. G. Gilly Mem. F. Neff Introd. 6 Some of the circumstances which ought to render the name of Neff himself, and of his Alpines, dear to all who venerate heroic zeal.
1883 Archaeol. Jrnl. 40 251 There were in the Roman auxiliary army nine cohorts of Alemanni, five of Germans, twelve of Alpines, eight of Aquitanians, [etc.].
1911 P. H. W. Ross Western Gate 68 No Alpine Race has..been able to protect itself against the fierce onslaught of the Baltics or Mediterraneans... Natural barriers..alone have saved the Alpines.
2.
a. = alpine strawberry n. at Compounds 1.
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the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular types of fruit > [noun] > edible berries > strawberry > types of
capron1693
hautboy1731
pine strawberry1754
Alpine1771
scarlet strawberry1786
sow-tit1788
Royal Sovereign1795
pineapple strawberry1796
scarlet1815
1771 R. Weston Universal Botanist II. 326 This curious strawberry was raised from the Alpine, impregnated by the Wood Strawberry; it was procured from Lincolnshire.
1785 Lady's Mag. Sept. 458 Plant some Alpines in pots and put them under a frame, and you will have fruit till Christmas.
1829 A. Jamieson Dict. Mech. Sci. I. 356 The woods bear shade as natural to them, and the alpines do tolerably well in it.
1889 Jrnl. Hort., Cottage Gardener & Home Farmer 22 Aug. 154/1 The strawberry season may be said to be over when the Alpines are coming in plentifully.
1913 A. S. Fuller Illstr. Strawberry Culturist 19 Even the Hautbois Strawberry, which, in some respects, resembles the Alpines, is sufficiently distinct to be easily recognised.
2004 C. Holmes New Shoots Old Tips 76 ‘Cambridge Late Pine’ and ‘Mara de Bois’ are also still available and the white fruiting alpines taste like white chocolate.
b. An alpine plant, or one that typically grows on high ground; (also) such a plant grown in rock gardens; (Horticulture) any low-growing plant grown in rock gardens.
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the world > plants > by habitat or distribution > [noun] > that grow in cold environments or at high altitude
alpestral1706
Alpine1800
microtherm1874
hekistotherm1875
cryophyte1909
1800 T. Garnett Observ. on Tour through Highlands I. 37 His garden..contains a variety of scarce plants, particularly British alpines, brought by himself from their native mountains.
1896 Daily News 21 May 8/4 A choice collection of alpines.
1907 R. J. Farrer My Rock-garden 26 Arenaria gothica justly heads the list of our alpines.
1925 B. Beetham in E. F. Norton et al. Fight for Everest: 1924 viii. 162 As we descended, the lichens, starveling grasses and dwarf alpines rapidly succeeded each other and in turn gave way to larger growths.
2008 K. N. E. Cox & R. Curtis-Machin Garden Plants Scotl. 157/2 A creeping alpine with masses of purple or reddish flowers in late spring and early summer.
3. Any of various North American satyrid butterflies of the genus Erebia, having brownish-black wings with orange-red markings and closely related to the ringlets of the Old World.
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1898 W. J. Holland Butterfly Bk. 210 Erebia epipsodea,..(The Common Alpine). Butterfly.
1951 A. B. Klots Field Guide Butterflies N. Amer. 75 Genus Erebia Dalman: The Alpines. Like Œneis, this is chiefly a genus of far northern species.
1984 R. M. Pyle Audubon Soc. Handbk. for Butterfly Watchers vii. 84 The subfamily Satyrinae are the satyrs, wood nymphs, arctics and alpines, ringlets and browns.
2007 Amer. Midland Naturalist 157 106 The Rockslide Alpine Erebia magdalena is shown..occupying about a third of Colorado.
4. Physical Anthropology. A member of the Alpine people. Cf. sense A. 5.
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the world > people > ethnicities > division of mankind by physical characteristics > other racial types > [noun]
Pontic1683
yellow man1788
yellowskin1847
Euro-African1854
Mediterranean1876
Armenoid1894
Alpine1899
Nordic1900
Eurasiatic1901
blond beast1907
Caspian1923
Veddoid1948
1899 A. H. Keane Man, Past & Present xiv. 511 The rather short, dark long-head, i.e. the ‘Mediterraneans’ becoming specialised along the northern shores of the Mediterranean.., while the dark or brown round-heads of medium height,—the ‘Alpines’ of Ripley and de Lapouge—were massed in the central uplands.
1922 A. Toynbee Western Question in Greece & Turkey vi. 113 The central Asian ‘Mongoloid’ type is found in Anatolia, but it is rare, and the great mass of the Turkish-speaking peasantry are ‘Alpines’.
1935 J. S. Huxley & A. C. Haddon We Europeans v. 152 The Alpines (Eurasiatics), who are of medium build, rather dark, and broad-headed.
2010 J. E. Mirel Patriotic Pluralism i. 37 Scientific racists subdivided and ranked Europeans into such different races as Nordics (from northern Europe), Alpines (from central and eastern Europe), and Mediterraneans (from southern Europe).
Compounds
C1. Compounds of the adjective.
Alpine anemone n. any of several anemones found in mountainous areas; esp. Anemone alpina, of southern and central Europe, which has white or yellow flowers and is commonly grown as a garden flower.
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the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > buttercup and allied flowers > anemones
anemone1548
rose parsley1548
windflower1551
agrimony1578
hepatica1578
liverwort1578
noble agrimony1578
noble liverwort1578
pasque flower1578
Coventry bells1597
flaw-flower1597
herb trinity1597
pulsatilla1597
emony1644
wood-anemone1657
Robin Hood1665
poppy anemone1731
Alpine anemone1774
liverleaf1820
Japan anemone1847
Pennsylvania wind flower1869
smell fox1892
prairie smoke1893
prairie crocus1896
St. Brigid anemone1902
Japanese anemonec1908
Spanish marigold-
1774 J. Hill Veg. Syst. XXV. 43 (heading) Alpine anemone.
1834 Mrs. Trollope Belgium & Western Germany in 1833 II. xx. 198 Iceland moss grows there in great abundance, and the Alpine anemone was in the fullest bloom.
1913 Racine (Wisconsin) Jrnl.-News 13 July 3/2 In the Central Alps the alpine anemone is sulphur yellow, in the Eastern Alps it is white.
2006 Belfast Tel. (Nexis) 11 Nov. (Weekender) 34 The high pastures, grazed by cows, are scattered with heavenly blue gentians and alpine anemones.
Alpine club n. a club or association for Alpinists; also as the name of a particular club or (with modifying word) in the names of various clubs.
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1859 Evening Star 23 Feb. 2/6 An association has recently been formed in London which has taken the name of the Alpine Club.
1864 A. Trollope Can you forgive Her? I. v. 33 What fine fellows those Alpine club men think themselves.
1935 D. Pilley Climbing Days xvi. 321 Recent chronicles of the French Alpine Club are filled annually with notes of his First Ascents and other exploits.
2007 Evening Standard (Palmerston North, N.Z.) (Nexis) 27 Jan. 3 She joined an alpine club and took a glacier travelling course before making a successful ascent of Mt. Cook with two companions.
Alpine fir n. a tall fir, Abies lasiocarpa, of the mountains of western North America, which provides paper pulp and low quality timber; (also) any of several other firs found in mountainous areas.
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > conifers > [noun] > fir-tree
spurch1295
firc1381
fir-treea1382
mast tree1597
white fir1605
Scotch fir1673
silver fir1707
Scotchman1807
fir balsam1810
Alpine fir1819
deal treea1825
pinsapo1839
fir-pine1843
red fir1852
grand fir1874
mountain balsam1878
Shasta fir1897
Santa Lucia fir1905
1819 F. Hamilton Acct. Kingdom Nepal ii. 96 The Hingwalka Chhota saral, or small alpine fir, so strongly resembles the common fir of the south of Europe, that [etc.].
1890 J. G. Lemmon in Third Biennial Rep. (Calif. State Board Forestry) 138 (table) Abies lasiocarpa.—Downy Scaled, or Alpine Fir.
1922 J. E. Kirkwood Forest Distribution Northern Rocky Mts. 153 Groves of the alpine fir often shelter snow drifts until August or even through the entire year.
2007 Prince George (Brit. Columbia) Citizen (Nexis) 28 July 30 When one mentions fir in British Columbia most people think of Douglas fir but the most common one in this area is alpine fir.
alpine glacier n. a glacier in the Alps; (in extended use) a glacier in a mountain valley (contrasted with continental glacier n. at continental adj. and n. Compounds).
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1792 W. Hamilton Lett. Princ. French Democracy 53 In Nova Zembla, or in Lapland, it exists like the sickly pine of the Alpine glaciers, almost amid the ice itself.
1826 E. Henderson Biblical Res. & Trav. in Russia xxiii. 499 We entered Georgia..and kept on the east side of the river all the way to Kobi, where it first approaches the road after its descent from the Alpine glaciers to the right.
1853 E. K. Kane U.S. Grinnell Exped. (1856) viii. 61 The ‘firn’, or consolidated snow of the Alpine glaciers.
1964 W. C. Putnam Geol. xiii. 326/2 Although individual glaciers and ice fields are tremendously diverse, they can be placed in two broad categories: alpine glaciers and continental glaciers.
1995 S. Marty Leaning on Wind ii. 21 This rock had been carried six miles east from its original location, high on the Livingstone Range... It had been rafted down this river valley on an alpine glacier's tongue.
2002 F. Close et al. Particle Odyssey xii. 222 The famous ‘Ice Man’, the body found preserved in an Alpine glacier in 1991.
Alpine hat n. a soft felt hat with a wide brim and low crown, typically with a feather or other ornament attached to the crown, traditionally worn in Alpine regions.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > headgear > [noun] > hat > made of specific material > felt > with feather cockade
Alpine hat1832
Tyrolean hat1906
1832 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Oct. 534/1 Carara..fastening his broad Alpine hat on his head by the clasp usual among the peasantry.
1901 G. B. Shaw Capt. Brassbound's Conversion i, in Three Plays for Puritans 232 (stage direct.) An Italian dressed in a much worn suit of blue serge, a dilapidated Alpine hat, and boots laced with scraps of twine.
1998 Esquire Feb. 98/2 Honest, ruddy-cheeked peasants,..huddled around us, admiring the attire..which we had chosen..: feathered alpine hats, musketeer-cuffed shirts, lederhosen, [etc.].
Alpine marmot n. a large marmot, Marmota marmota, which inhabits high-altitude grassland in the Alps and other mountainous areas of Central Europe.
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > genus Marmota > marmota marmota (marmot)
mouse of the mountain?1583
mountain-mouse1599
marmottane1601
Alpine mouse1607
marmot1607
mountain rat1659
Alpine marmot1771
1771 T. Pennant Synopsis Quadrupeds 268 Marmot... Alpine. Mus Alpinus, Plinii.
1780 W. Smellie tr. Comte de Buffon Nat. Hist. Gen. & Particular IV. 339 (heading) Alpine marmot.
1880 St. Nicholas Feb. 291/1 The little Alpine marmots burrow in the mountain slopes near the region of perpetual snow.
1953 Jrnl. Royal Anthropol. Inst. 83 65 Younger Loess I... Fauna scarce, but comprising Alpine marmot and Spermophilus rufescens, both characteristic of cold steppe conditions.
2004 Independent 24 July 28/4 The Alpine marmot, a rodent which faced extinction in the region [sc. the Pyrenees], has also been successfully reintroduced.
alpine meadow n. a meadow in the Alps or other mountain region, esp. one lying above the tree line.
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1795 Bot. Mag. 9 318 It is a native of Switzerland, where..it grows abundantly in the Alpine meadows... with us it flowers in May and June.
1848 Amer. Jrnl. Sci. 55 423 Those boundless alpine meadows, on which the existence of the Nomadic tribes of Asia Minor mainly depends.
1883 Belgravia Sept. 333 After a long steep climb, we reach a billowy Alpine meadow, overshadowed with chestnut trees.
1976 D. Blood Rocky Mountain Wildlife i. ii. 109 The smallest of the group, appropriately called the least chipmunk, occurs throughout the Rockies from shrubby valley bottoms to alpine meadows.
2009 New Yorker 21 Dec. 104/3 The rain forest and the high alpine meadows up there were unique in southern-Africa.
Alpine mouse n. [after classical Latin mūs Alpīnus (Pliny)] now historical and rare = Alpine marmot n.
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > [noun] > family Sciuridae (squirrel) > genus Marmota > marmota marmota (marmot)
mouse of the mountain?1583
mountain-mouse1599
marmottane1601
Alpine mouse1607
marmot1607
mountain rat1659
Alpine marmot1771
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 521 The Alpine Mouse taketh her name from the Alpes... The Italians cal it Marmota.
1765 W. Lewis New Dispensatory (ed. 2) ii. 99/1 Some of these [fats]..are attenuating and resolvent; such as those of the heron, wild cat.., fox, alpine mouse, [etc.].
1834 Mag. Nat. Hist. 7 181 I have long known that dogs (and, I think, the shepherd's beyond all others) are particularly fond of the Alpine mouse.
1993 K. Reynolds Central Switzerland 23 Marmots, whose name comes from Murmeltier (the alpine mouse of the Romans).
Alpine rose n. [after post-classical Latin rosa Alpina (1586 or earlier)] (a) the rose Rosa pendulina (formerly R. alpina), of the mountains of central and southern Europe, which has bright pink flowers and hanging red fruits; (b) = alpenrose n.
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the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > cultivated or ornamental trees and shrubs > [noun] > azaleas or rhododendrons
mountain rose1640
rhododendron1657
Alpine rose1728
winterbloom1752
azalea1753
mountain rosebay1759
rosebay1760
rhodora1770
mountain laurel1785
swamp azalea1796
big laurel1810
rose tree1818
white honeysuckle1818
meadow pink1827
Pinkster1833
mayflower1838
alpenrose1839
swamp pink1840
rhodie1851
swamp honeysuckle1856
ponticum1875
tree azalea1884
rhodo1886
Kurume azalea1920
1728 R. Bradley Dict. Botanicum at Rosa Rosa Montana, i. e. Rosa Alpina, or the Alpine Rose.
1833 L. Agassiz Journey Switzerland 174 Along this track I observed..an especially great number of the Alpine rose, that beautiful pink dwarf rhododendron.
1913 H. H. Thomas Rose Bk. xxi. 139 Rosa alpina, the Alpine rose, is a native of Europe... The branches are often destitute of, or armed with but few, spines.
1922 M. I. Newbigin Frequented Ways ix. 104 The two types of Alpine rose or rhododendron and the abundance of the mazereon are features novel to the botanist from Great Britain.
2009 Times (Nexis) 16 May The route heads east through patches of alpine roses and ancient stands of stone pine to the Boscheben hut.
Alpine speedwell n. a small perennial speedwell, Veronica alpina, having glossy green leaves and blue flowers and native to mountainous and Arctic areas of Europe, Asia, and North America.
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1771 J. Hill Veg. Syst. XIX. 1 (heading) Alpine speedwell.
1861 A. Pratt Flowering Plants & Ferns Great Brit. IV. 90 Alpine Speedwell..is found only on the Highland mountains.
1922 Contrib. U.S. National Herbarium 22 407 Alpine Speedwell. Frequent in meadows above timber line, sometimes found in wet places at middle altitudes.
2010 G. Price Walks & Treks Maritime Alps 74 The path ascends a broad crest colonised by juniper and iridescent alpine speedwell.
alpine strawberry n. a form of the Eurasian wild or wood strawberry, Fragaria vesca, of Alpine regions, which typically has larger fruits and a longer fruiting season than its parent form, and is often cultivated; (also) the fruit of this plant; cf. sense B. 2.
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1765 P. Miller Gardeners Kalendar (ed. 14) 256 Fruits in Prime... Filberts, Nuts, Mulberries, Alpine Strawberry, Gooseberries, Currants, [etc.].
1913 A. S. Fuller Illustr. Strawberry Culturist 54 The alpine strawberry..is of a very mild flavour with a delicious perfume. There are quite a large number of varieties.
2011 A. Pavord Growing Food 21 And do not forget the alpine strawberry, which with its pretty leaves and flowers makes an excellent edging for potager or path.
Alpine touring n. Skiing a style of skiing originating in the Alps and characterized by long-distance journeys over mountainous terrain; (also) designating or denoting a type of wide ski designed for this, typically having bindings which can be set to allow the heel to move when climbing, or to lock it in place for descent.
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1961 N.Y. Times 7 May xx. 59/1 Alpine touring is a continent removed, geographically and figuratively, from downhill skiing anywhere in the United States, including the Rockies.
1978 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 13 Dec. The widest skis are a specialty item. They are mountain or Alpinetouring skis with width as much as 75 mm and such features as steel oraluminum edges.
1990 Countryside Winter 164/1 The two types of skiing most practical for this kind of backcountry camping trip are telemark and Alpine touring.
2006 Esquire (Electronic ed.) Apr. 112 The beauty of alpine touring skis is, your heels unlock for cross-country push power, then click back in for downhill stability.
alpine tundra n. a region or zone occurring above the treeline in high mountains, typically colonized by mosses, lichens, and low-growing perennial grasses, sedges, and flowering plants.
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1903 L. H. Harvey Study Physiographic Ecol. Mt. Ktaadn 15 Encroaching upon this zone from below came that of the Alpine tundra, extending out into the lowlands.
1988 P. Wayburn Adventuring in Alaska (rev. ed.) iii. 141 Creeping from the edges of the ice in high places, the plants of the alpine tundra cling to the raw land.
2001 Backpacker Apr. 114/2 In alpine tundra—that zone above treeline where mosses, lichens, and ankle-high wild-flowers carpet the ground—the walking is easy.
C2. General use of the noun as a modifier (in sense B. 2b), as alpine frame, alpine garden, alpine house, etc.
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the world > food and drink > farming > gardening > garden > [noun] > rock garden
rockwork1632
rockery1794
alpine garden1801
rock garden1821
stonery1833
moraine1907
1801 J. Britton Beauties Wilts. I. x. 243 The way, most advantageous for a stranger to see the Alpine Garden, is to cross the water in a boat.
1881 Encycl. Brit. XII. 290/1 Give abundance of air to the greenhouse, conservatory, and alpine frame in mild weather.
1933 Jrnl. Royal Hort. Soc. 58 223 With the development of the alpine house..it would be possible to grow numbers of them.
1978 Pop. Mech. Mar. 145/1 An alpine garden of greenery and blooming plants nestled among rocks.
2006 Gardens Monthly Apr. 34/3 This is an opportunity to select and plant a few in a rockery or a container such as an alpine trough.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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