crunnick n also crannick, chronic, cronnick, crunnock, scronnick*, etc; cranny*, croony* [phonetics unavailable]. EDD crannock 'root of furze; the stem of a furze-brush, which has been burnt' Pem Do; cp EDD crank sb 2 'dead branch' GI; DC ~ (Nfld: 1895-). See also CRAN. Tree or root killed or much weathered by wind, water or fire; piece of such wood gathered as fuel; small twisted fir or spruce. Also attrib.
   [c1894] PANL P4/14, p. 198 Dry wood is staragons or crunnocks. 'To spell a yafful of crunnocks' is to [carry] an armful of dry wood for kindling purposes. 1896 J A Folklore ix, 36 Crannocks on the west coast, crunnocks to the north, small pieces of wood for kindling. [c1900] 1978 RLS 8, p. 22 Crawnick. Small dry or withered timber, trunk, etc. Crawnick grove, patch of same. 1937 DEVINE 15 Cronic—the stump or bole of a tree, also the roots with bark all gone and whitened by the sun and weather for many years. P 4-59 Cronic. A root of tree washed out on shore of lake or ocean. 1963 HEAD 141 Crunicks (the twisted trunks of stunted trees) and in some areas peat, are the only local fuel resources [in extreme south of Avalon Peninsula]. T 33-64 You might see a scattered old crannick [old dead tree] sticking up. T 194-65 Up in the bottom of Harbour Deep was all burned, the forest fire. And we'd go there to get our summer's wood, cause 'twas all crunnicks—dry wood. Q 67-15 Crannies. Burnt-over wood that has turned white after a long period of time. 1968 DILLON 135 You wouldn't cut cronnicks, you'd just haul 'em up out o' the ground... Cronnicks is old stuff bent down on the ground; on the small side, no growth in 'em. 1969 Nfld Essays 33 The only vegetation, other than grass, is made up of small, stunted dwarf-trees, usually blasted on their seaward sides ... cronnick.

Go Back