bríathar

See also: briathar

Old Irish

From Proto-Celtic *breitrā (“word”), also "battle," perhaps related to *brē-, *bri- (“to cut”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH- (“to strike”); compare Welsh brwydr (“fight, combat”).^[1]

bríathar f (genitive bré(i)thre, nominative plural bríathra)

word
- c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 17^b5
  Ammi túailṅge ar mbréthre.
  We are potent in our word.
  (literally, “We are of the ability of our word.”)
- c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 29^a12
  indhí pridchite et for·chanat bréthir Dǽ
  those who preach and teach God’s word
speech, talk
(grammar) verb
- c. 845, St Gall Glosses on Priscian, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1975, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. II, pp. 49–224, Sg. 159^a3
  Is airi ní táet comṡuidigud fri rangabáil, húare as coibnesta do bréthir: ar is lour comṡuidigud fri suidi, air bid comṡuidigud etarscartha comṡuidigud rangabálae.
  This is why composition does not occur with a participle, because it is akin to a verb: for composition with the latter is sufficient, for composition of a participle will be separated composition.

Feminine ā-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	bríathar^L	bréthir^L, bréithir	bríathra^H
Vocative	bríathar^L	bréthir^L, bréithir	bríathra^H
Accusative	bréthir^N, bréithir	bréthir^L, bréithir	bríathra^H
Genitive	bréthre^H, bréithre	bríathar^L	bríathar^N
Dative	bréthir^L, bréithir	bríathraib	bríathraib
Initial mutations of a following adjective: ^H = triggers aspiration ^L = triggers lenition ^N = triggers nasalization

Mutation of *bríathar*
radical	lenition	nasalization
bríathar	bríathar pronounced with /β(ʲ)-/	mbríathar

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

^ Pokorny, Julius (1959) “166”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 1, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 166