gealbhan

Irish

gealbhan binne

Etymology

From Old Irish gelbann. Compare Cornish and Breton golvan; Welsh golfan.

Pronunciation

• (Munster) IPA^(key): /ɟəˈl̪ˠuːn̪ˠ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈɟalˠəwənˠ/, /ˈɟal̪ˠəwən̪ˠ/; (as if spelled gealbhán) /ˈɟalˠəwanˠ/, /ˈɟal̪ˠəwan̪ˠ/

Noun

gealbhan m (genitive singular gealbhain, nominative plural gealbhain)

1. sparrow (bird of the family Passeridae)

Declension

Declension of gealbhan

First declension

Bare forms: Case Singular Plural Nominative gealbhan gealbhain Vocative a ghealbhain a ghealbhana Genitive gealbhain gealbhan Dative gealbhan gealbhain

Forms with the definite article: Case Singular Plural Nominative an gealbhan na gealbhain Genitive an ghealbhain na ngealbhan Dative leis an ngealbhan don ghealbhan leis na gealbhain

Derived terms

• chomh héadrom le gealbhan (“light of foot, of heart”, literally “as light as a sparrow”)
• chomh héasca le gealbhan (“light of foot, of heart”, literally “as swift as a sparrow”)
• gealbhan binne
• gealbhan bruaigh
• gealbhan caoch
• gealbhan cátha
• gealbhan claí
• gealbhan coille
• gealbhan crainn
• gealbhan creige
• gealbhan giolcaí
• gealbhan glas
• gealbhan gleoránach
• gealbhan lín
• gealbhan rois
• gealbhan sciobóil
• gealbhan sléibhe
• gealbhan tí

 

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
gealbhan	ghealbhan	ngealbhan
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “gealbhan”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• G. Toner, M. Ní Mhaonaigh, S. Arbuthnot, D. Wodtko, M.-L. Theuerkauf, editors (2019), “gelbann”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Entries containing “gealbhan” in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm, 1959, by Tomás de Bhaldraithe.
• Entries containing “gealbhan” in New English-Irish Dictionary by Foras na Gaeilge.
• Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 54