Harusambla (“Harusammal”)

Not traced. Given its location in the middle of a field of mosses, clearly assumed to be one of them. But what? Possibly a conflation of h[arilik k]arusammal, great goldilocks or common hair/haircap moss, Polytrichum commune (but Karusammal:Karusambla is already used), or an unrecorded name for one of the broom mosses, Dicranum spp., whose stems fork (haru = branch, fork, prong). Possibly a mistranscription for harilik hallsamblik, Hypogymnia physodes. Possibly a vernacular for any spreading moss (haruma, to branch out). Unlikely, but maybe an accidental rendition of haruhärmik, Green Mountain Fringe-moss, Racomitrium fasciculare (rare in Estonia anyway)? Either way, to quote Asta Põldmäe^[1]: “This small old country was frightfully mossy!”. Estonia has 558-odd varieties of moss. Discounting close relatives of the greater-, lesser-, speckled- sort, there remain 186. Of these, 67 – or one third – are called mis-ta-n’d-oligisammal (thingamajig moss). So it’s not as if they had no choice. None of them, however, is called harusammal. I cannot state with certainty that the word does not exist (all the more so since it does in this street-name) but, as black swans go, the genetics are recent. Update: according to a bryophyte expert at Tartu University: “Sammalde eestikeelsete nimede hulgas sammaltaime nimega harusammal ei ole.” (loosely tranlsated: “Ain’t no bryophyte plant called harusammal among Estonian names for mosses.”). One of a group of moss-named streets. See Karusambla. And not in Tallinn in the first place, but Laagri, although leading west off Möldre, so not that far.

^[1] See Baltic Belles: The Dedalus Book of Estonian Women's Literature, ed. Elle-Mari Talivee, www.dedalusbooks.com