jarl

/jɑɹl̩/

//jɑɹl̩// noun

"jarl" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“jarl” is uncommon English (frequency #57,476 among 796 “J” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,476
frequency rank, English
796
“J” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A medieval Scandinavian nobleman, especially in Norway and Denmark.

Corpus desk

Index EN-jarl · jarl · English

jarl · rank #57,476 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #57,476
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 796
  • PHOTO-FINISH Japonica

Nearest frequency peer: Japonica (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “jarl”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “jarl” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for jarl
PropertyValue
Headwordjarl
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/jɑɹl̩/
Letters4
Frequency rank#57,476
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “jarl” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).jarlfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Japonica” (#57,475), “Janey” (#57,474), “Jessa” (#57,478). Among 796 “J” headwords, “jarl” is #57,476. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

jarl is uncommon English at frequency #57,476 among 796 “J” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /jɑɹl̩/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A medieval Scandinavian nobleman, especially in Norway and Denmark.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for jarl, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old Norse jarl, from Proto-Norse ᛖᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ (erilaʀ). Cognates include Old English eorl. Doublet of earl and eorl. The correct English form is jarl, spelled J-A-R-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A medieval Scandinavian nobleman, especially in Norway and Denmark.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how jarl appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. There were three kinds of Viking: thralls, karls and jarls. Thralls were the slaves. They were owned by karls and jarls.

Etymology

From Old Norse jarl, from Proto-Norse ᛖᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ (erilaʀ). Cognates include Old English eorl. Doublet of earl and eorl.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "jarl"?
"jarl" is spelled J-A-R-L. The IPA pronunciation is /jɑɹl̩/.
What does "jarl" mean?
As a noun, "jarl" means: A medieval Scandinavian nobleman, especially in Norway and Denmark.
How do you pronounce "jarl"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "jarl" is /jɑɹl̩/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "jarl"?
From Old Norse jarl, from Proto-Norse ᛖᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ (erilaʀ). Cognates include Old English eorl. Doublet of earl and eorl. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "jarl", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list