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Helmiku (Helmik)
Melick, grass of the fescue family. One of a meadow flower or grass group. See Hunditubaka.
Herilase (Herilane)
Wasp. Just next door to Lepatriinu. Etymology unsure, perhaps a Baltic loanword related to Lithuanian širšė (hornet). Given that heris:here means scoundrel or wicked, its association is very tempting…
Hiidtamme (Hiidtamm)
Giant oak. The hiid > hiie (see next entry), hiidtamm > hiietamm relation is interesting. It is quite likely that simply becoming large, over human generations, gives it ‘sacred’ qualities too. See Tamme. The oldest known oak in Estonia is the Tamme-Lauri oak, in Võrumaa. Almost 700 years old, with a height of 17 m and a chest-height circumference of 8.25 m, it decorated the back of the 10-krooni banknote (for information on Estonian currency, see Krooni). A bas-relief sculpture of the oak can be seen on the corner of Liivalaia and Juhkentali.
Hiie (Hiis)
Grove, sacred grove, sacred spot in general: stone, tree, hill, spring. Street named after some extremely old trees nearby (see Hiidtamme). There seems to be a line going across the country with sacred groves, hiied, being slightly more common in the northern half. The term seems to derive from Proto-Finnic *hiici, thought originally to mean ‘burial ground’ and evolving into Finnish hiisi, devil, forest spirit, hell, etc. (but see Hiiela), or perhaps a loan from Proto-Germanic *χīđiz, for den or thicket. Hiie põik formerly known as Hõbemäe (silver mountain/hill).
