Save Gender Masculine Usage Anglo-Saxon Pronounced Pron. /dryxt.heɫm/(Old English) [key·simplify] Other Forms FormsDrithelm, Drythelm Meaning & History Derived from the Old English elements dryht "troop, army" and helm "helmet, protection". This was the name of a monk associated with the monastery of Melrose known from the Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum of Bede.