howdie

American  

[hou-dee, ou-, hoh-dee, oh-dee] / ˈhaʊ di, ˈaʊ-, ˈhoʊ di, ˈoʊ di /

noun

Scot. and North England Slang.

1. a midwife.

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Etymology

Origin of howdie

Origin uncertain

Example Sentences

The creeshie rax wi' skelpin' kaes Nae mair the howdie bicker whangs, Nor weanies in their wee bit claes Glour light as lammies wi' their sangs.

From Punch - Volume 25 (Jul-Dec 1853) by Various

The howdie, or midwife, was a person of much consequence.

From Personal Recollections, from Early Life to Old Age, of Mary Somerville by Somerville, Mary

But saw ye ne'er some pingein' bairn As weak as a pitaty-par'n' - Less used wi' guidin' horse-shoe airn Than steerin' crowdie - Packed aff his lane, by moss an' cairn, To ca' the howdie.

From Underwoods by Stevenson, Robert Louis

But saw ye ne’er some pingein’ bairn As weak as a pitaty-par’n’— Less �sed wi’ guidin’ horse-shoe aim Than steerin’ crowdie— Packed aff his lane, by moss an’ cairn, To ca’ the howdie.

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 14 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis

I was bewildered—the light in the room made my een reel; but I soon came to myself, when I saw a man and Mrs. Kemp the howdie busy rowing something in flannel.

From Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume XXIII by Wilson, John Mackay