patterann.
/ˈpat(ə)rən/, /ˈpat(ə)rn̩/, U.S. /ˈpædər(ə)n/ Now rare.
= patrin n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > aspects of travel > guidance in travel > [noun] > that which guides or leads > handfuls of grass or leaves left by gipsies
patteran1843
patrin1875
1843 G. Borrow Zincali (ed. 2) I. Introd. 37 I allude to the patteran or trail.
1857 G. Borrow Romany Rye I. xi. 146 Do you know what a patteran means?’ ‘Of course..; the gypsy trail, the handful of grass which the gypsies strew in the roads as they travel, to give information to any of their companions who may be behind, as to the route they have taken.
1877 W. Besant & J. Rice This Son of Vulcan (new ed.) i. xi Maybe it's the gipsy's patteran they mean.
1928 D. Byrne Destiny Bay §5 vii. 338 I found a broken fern and a slip of oaktree, the gypsy patteran.
1949 W. R. Benét Dark People in J. Haverstick et al. Sat. Rev. Treasury (1957) 397 Scattering the patteran of Romany.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1843