swains
Old-fashioned country lovers
Swains is the plural of swain, an archaic or literary word for a young man, especially a country youth or rustic lover.
The term appears mainly in pastoral poetry and old ballads, where swains court maidens in idealized rural settings: The swains competed for her attention at the harvest dance.
Now used only for deliberate archaism or gentle mockery.
shepherd
One who tends flocks
- plowmanOne who furrows fields
- peasantLow-status agricultural laborer
- countrymanPerson from same nation
farmer · husbandman · tiller · crofter · farmland · pastoral · rustic · bucolic · yokel · herdsman
courtship
Seeking another's romantic favor
- wooingRomantic pursuit of another
- serenadeOutdoor romantic performance
- lovesickPining from romantic longing
enamored · ardent · devotion · paramour · beau · tryst · amorous · infatuation · loveletters · flirtation
pastoral social role
swainscourtiers
Royal court members
sophisticates · city dwellers · urbanites · noblemen · aristocrats