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Breughel the Elder

Breughel the Elder

9.3
A painter from Flanders in the 1500s who painted landscapes and peasant life
  • proper noun
: Breughel el Viejo
  • The works of Breughel the Elder are famous for their detailed depictions of peasant life.

Examples

  • Art historians often compare Breughel the Elder with other Renaissance masters.

  • A major exhibition of paintings by Breughel the Elder was held at the museum.

  • Look at Breughel the Elder!

  • The works of Breughel the Elder are celebrated for their detail.

  • Many art lovers appreciate the landscapes painted by Breughel the Elder during the Northern Renaissance.

  • The intricate details in Breughel the Elder's paintings provide a vivid glimpse into 16th-century peasant life.

  • Art historians often highlight the influence of Breughel the Elder on later European artists.

Synonyms

Brueghel
vsBreughel the Elder
1 9.4

A Flemish painter known for detailed village and landscape scenes

uses the full name and elder title rather than surname alone
Pieter Bruegel
vsBreughel the Elder
1 8.4

A Flemish painter known for detailed scenes of peasant life and landscapes

adds the elder title in the key form
Pieter Bruegel the Elder
vsBreughel the Elder
1 8.8

A 16th-century painter from Flanders who painted detailed landscapes and village life

uses the key form with alternate surname spelling
Pieter Brueghel
vsBreughel the Elder
1 8.9

A famous painter from Flanders in the 1500s who painted village and farm life

includes the elder title rather than just the name
Pieter Brueghel the Elder
vsBreughel the Elder
9.3

A Flemish painter from the 1500s who painted detailed landscapes and scenes of village life

uses the key form with a different surname spelling
Pieter Breughel
vsBreughel the Elder
7.9

A Flemish painter from the 1500s known for detailed landscapes and village life scenes

focuses on the Flemish origin without mentioning Dutch association

Surface Forms

Morphology

Breughel + the + elder

This is a compositional name phrase: 'Breughel' (a proper name) combined with the post-name adjective 'the Elder' transparently signals the older/earlier person named Breughel. The meaning (an older/earlier Breughel, i.e. a specific individual rather than an idiomatic sense) is directly derivable from the constituents and follows a cross-linguistically common naming pattern.

Etymology

Breughel the Elder is the name for a famous Flemish painter known for detailed pictures of village and peasant life. He is called 'the Elder' because his son had the same name and also became a painter, so the label tells us which Breughel we mean.