Fenian

English

Etymology

Blend of Irish féinne or fianna, plural of fiann (“soldier”), the name of a legendary band of Irish warriors, and Old Irish Féne or Féni, legendary settlers of Ireland. First attested from 1816.

Pronunciation

• enPR: fē-nē-ən, fēn′yən, IPA^(key): /ˈfiːniːən/, /ˈfiːnjən/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

Noun

Fenian (plural Fenians)

1. (British, Ireland) An Irish nationalist or republican.
2. (historical) A member of the Fenian Brotherhood or the Irish Republican Brotherhood, Irish republican organizations active in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
3. (derogatory, Scotland and Northern Ireland) A Catholic, especially one of Irish ethnicity or descent.
   • [2023 August 23, Rory Carroll, “Files reveal terms ministers were warned not to use in Northern Ireland”, in The Guardian‎^[1], →ISSN:

     It was sound advice for anyone visiting Northern Ireland in 1999 and remains so today: do not refer to Protestants as “Prods”, or to Catholics as “Fenians” or “Taigs”, and whatever you do don’t refer to your visit as “being out here”.]

4. (derogatory, Scotland and Northern Ireland) A supporter of Scottish association football club Celtic F.C.

Synonyms

• (derogatory, Irish Catholic or supporter of Celtic F.C): taig, Tim

Related terms

• Fenian Cycle

Translations

Irish nationalist or republican

• Irish: Fínín m

member of the Fenian Brotherhood or the Irish Republican Brotherhood

• Irish: Fínín m

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “Fenian”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

• Fenian - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Anagrams

• Fannie, fainne